


Howl With The Pack

by Lula_Landry



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alpha Ben Solo, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Angst with a Happy Ending, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Interspecies Romance, Knotting, Mating Bond, Puppy Love, Skywalker Family Feels, Werewolf Mates, Young Rey
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-24
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:01:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 16
Words: 41,640
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25483606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lula_Landry/pseuds/Lula_Landry
Summary: Ben Solo has lived his life denying his heritage. He is a shapeshifter, the grandson of an Alpha werewolf, but insists on pretending to be an ordinary man. All that is about to change. One night, he stumbles across a starving wolf pup in the middle of a forest. He takes her in, wanting to save a life, unaware that Rey is more than what she seems.What Ben doesn’t know is that his single act of kindness is about to bring his past crashing down around him. It’s time for Ben to become who he was born to be- Solo by name, Skywalker by nature.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 174
Kudos: 558





	1. Hold It In

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Walkuwaš](https://archiveofourown.org/works/21233030) by [MalevolentReverie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MalevolentReverie/pseuds/MalevolentReverie). 



It was a dark and stormy night—everything a creature of shadow could hope for. Ben Solo loped through the forest of Takodana at a steady pace. He was on two legs and not four, but still his blood sang in exhilaration. He hadn’t hunted in a long time. Too long, in fact. He was becoming domesticated.

He thought of his mother and experienced a pang of regret. Would she be disappointed by the way he lived his life? He determinedly pushed the thought away, focusing instead on steady droplets of rain falling on hair and skin, the silver glow of the moon in a dark sky, the smell of earth and pine. This was living.

Ben wasn't able to resist the call of the full moon. True, he was in his human form, but neither had he brought any weapons with him. He intended to kill with tooth and claw… or bare hands, as it were.

Even on two feet, Ben Solo was formidable. Quicker, stronger and with better reflexes than a normal man. That strength had been a problem growing up. He was home schooled because his mother didn’t trust he wouldn’t accidentally hurt other children. Or perhaps she didn’t trust he wouldn’t deliberately hurt them.

As a child, he’d been more attuned to his feral half, more willing to give in to savage impulses. Decades later he had his animal nature under control, but there remained a simmering in his blood. No matter how civilised he liked to pretend he’d become there was a constant underlying need to dominate all he surveyed.

The truth was he would always be a monster.

Ben stopped in the midst of a pitch dark forest, frustrated by maudlin thoughts. They disturbed his equilibrium when all he wanted to focus on was the hunt. He told himself to let go of the past. He was a lone wolf in more ways than one. He had no pack to follow, no Alpha to serve. No use for ancient history weighing him down.

The wind shifted and the scent of blood filled Ben’s preternaturally sensitive nose. The hairs on the back of his neck rose. _Death,_ his animal hindbrain hissed. Something or someone had murdered in his back yard.

Ben owned the thousand acres of forest that abutted his home. Not many were aware of that fact- he found it easier to maintain anonymity. The untamed land was a safety net of sorts. If ever his true nature reasserted itself, he would have an immediate place of refuge away from humanity. After all, civilisation was where he would do the most damage.

A solid chunk of Takodana’s forests were deemed private land with animal friendly fencing and plenty of signposts, but it didn’t prevent hunters from traipsing through the grounds as if they had a right to do so. Ben had grown philosophical in his old age- he was nearly a hundred- and as long as these hunters killed cleanly, respectfully and a good distance from his house, he let them be. But something about the scent of this kill raised alarm bells.

He was dressed simply in waterproof black pants and a dark grey hooded sweater, his feet and hands bare. He lifted the hood of his sweatshirt to hide his face and began circling the area, drawing ever closer to the inimitable smell of spilled blood. He moved quickly and silently.

Long before he saw them, her heard voices. The shifting wind brought conversation to him in fragments.

_We should go… skin the animal… good money… no time._

Ben resisted the urge to growl. He remained in the shadows as his eyes spotted two men arguing over the body of a dead…

Wolf.

They had killed a wolf.

_They dare!_

There was a ringing in his ears, a burning itch in his skin, a tightening in his muscles. It was too dangerous to change. Not here and not now. In his anger he might kill the humans.

_They deserve it._

His teeth ached as if grown too big for his jaw. He had to stop. Breathe. Find his centre. Ben had no option but to remain in control. Anything else was out of the question unless he intended to destroy his way of life. He tried to rationalise, think things through. It had been years since he’d seen a wolf in his neck of the woods and now one lay dead not ten feet away from him.

“The pelt of a wolf would fetch a pretty penny,” one man spoke, his face and voice eager.

He was tall, a few inches shy of Ben’s prodigious six foot six, the moonlight leeching colour from his pointed face and fair hair. His companion was shorter and younger with a soft, boyish face and dark hair. They were both dressed in standard hunting gear, camouflage jackets and pants, caps, boots and gloves.

Ben wondered why they were still wandering the forest at night. Perhaps they’d been caught out. Storm clouds had brought the darkness much sooner than usual.

And yet they’d found time to slay a wolf.

_Murderers._

Ben took another deep breath, steadying his pulse.

“I think we should go, Armie,” the younger man was saying, his face worried as he tried to see into the misty darkness. “Our batteries are nearly dead and I’d rather use the last of our light to find a way outta this place than attempt to skin an animal.”

“You’re too soft, Dolph,” the taller man snapped. “Grow a backbone.”

Ben sniffed. That was why they were standing there in the dark. They were trying to preserve torchlight.

“What about the pup?” Dolph suggested placatingly. “If we take it maybe we could find someone willing to pay us for the trouble.”

Every cell in Ben’s body turned to flame. His pupils blew open as he looked past the two men at what he’d been avoiding.

A white and grey wolf lay on its side, jaw slack and eyes opaque. Splashes of blood drenched its fur, the fluid appearing black in the moonlight. There, almost lost against the belly of the beast, was a squirming bundle of fur.

Youngling.

Wolf cub.

_Mine._

Ben shook his head to clear it as the need to possess almost overwhelmed him.

“What d’you think we’ll get for the pup?” Armie was asking. “Five hundred seems a fair price, don’t you…?”

_Mine!_

And for the first time in several decades, listening to the human male monetizing the life of the cub at its dead mother’s side, Ben Solo lost control. He let out a howl so deep and wild it nearly unhinged his jaw. He held on to his skinsuit by a hair’s breadth, refusing to turn even though his nails thickened and blood boiled.

The two men froze in place, necks twisting wildly in an attempt to locate the source of the sound.

“What the hell?” Dolph gasped. “Another wolf? I didn’t even know they existed in these parts.”

Armie grabbed the hefty torch hanging off his belt and switched it on. He spun around, pointing the flickering beam towards Ben, but the big male was no longer there. He ran quickly through the brush, circling the trio. Once he was behind them, he let out another howl.

Dolph clutched Armie’s hand and the taller man dropped his torch. He scrambled for it, turning the beam to where Ben had emerged a second time, but the male had moved on. Yet another howl filled the night air from a third location.

The bundle of fur scrambled onto the body of its mother and gave a soft _‘awoo’_ in return.

_Mine!_

Ben gnashed his teeth, willing the men to run. He would show himself if that was what it took to save the little one.

“There’s a whole pack of them!” Dolph yelled, switching on his own torch.

Armie seemed less inclined to panic though his eyes swivelled frantically in his head. “I dunno, man…”

“What don’t you know?” Dolph all but screeched.

“It sounded like the same wolf all three times,” Armie said, pulling his shotgun from its sling. “If we grab the pup and run…”

“No!” Dolph yelled. “We both know what these wolves are after. Taking the pup paints a target on our backs.”

“Shut up,” Armie hissed. “You’re being too loud.”

Dolph shook his head. “Look, man, I’m leaving whether you are or not. We were supposed to bag a few ducks, not lose our lives to a pack of wolves.”

“I told you, I don’t think…”

But Dolph had walked away, torch held high as he retraced his steps to their point of entry.

Ben waited in the dark, muscles tensed, ready to leap if the other man touched his cub. Armie swore and gave one last, lingering look at the little one before rushing to catch up with his friend.

They were gone.

Ben let out the breath he didn’t realise he’d been holding and emerged from behind the mossy trunk of a tree. He slid smoothly onto his hands and knees, coming close to where the little cub sat shivering.

Big eyes got bigger in a tiny, furry face. He was not what she had expected.

She.

The wolf pup was a little girl.

 _Mine,_ his heartstrings insisted.

Ben approached slow and steady, allowing the hood of his sweater to fall to his shoulders, revealing his raw boned face and ink black hair. The cub tumbled off her mother’s decaying body and approached him with equal caution.

She was thin but not yet sickly, with tan fur and brown eyes shot through with green. Her little ears stuck up inquisitively, her black button nose quivering as she inhaled his scent.

Ben reached out, palm open. The cub froze but didn’t retreat.

“You’re a brave one,” Ben murmured.

Again, those ears twitched. He ran a finger behind one ear, lightly scratching, and she wriggled into the warmth of his hand.

“Good girl,” he murmured. “I’m sorry your mama’s dead, sweetheart.”

She gave a tiny whimper and he wondered if she understood his words.

Impossible. That would make her a shapeshifter like him. Apart from his mother, he’d never met another of his kind. Why would that change now? There remained few werewolves on the earth.

Ben shrugged out of his hoodie, exposing his bare chest to the moist night air. Like most predators, he ran hot and didn’t actually need clothes for warmth. He gently wrapped the little cub and lifted her into his arms. She was nearly weightless and he propped her against his shoulder. She wriggled and squirmed until her fluffy head popped out of cotton fabric that smelled like him.

“Time to say goodbye to mama,” he told her, the timbre of his dark, smooth voice perfectly matching the black velvet of the night sky.

Ben’s liquid amber gaze and the pup’s clear eyes both turned as one to the body of the grey wolf. He frowned, leaning closer. The adult she-wolf’s fur and skin were torn in a jagged pattern that was strangely familiar, the wounds high on her white breast. It did not look like she’d been shot with anything man made. His stomach clenched.

Could the two men from tonight have simply stumbled across the dead wolf’s body? If so, what was it that actually killed her? A grizzly bear’s paw?

The pup in his arms began gnawing on his hand, tiny teeth sharp. “Hey you, it’s rude to bite your elders,” Ben reprimanded.

She kept nibbling. Little brat.

He would return at a later time to examine the mother wolf’s body and try to figure out what brought her down. First things first, he needed to take care of the girl cub in his arms.

Ben broke into a smooth, loping run, heading back to his cabin. The pup stopped chewing on his hand, sticking her head up as far as it would go, ears flapping as his legs picked up speed.

She was a cute little thing, but it was a long shot expecting her to be a shapeshifter. As far as Ben knew, he was the only living werewolf in the neighbourhood.

His pup was fast asleep by the time they arrived home.

From the outside, Ben’s two-bedroom place looked like any log cabin in the area, simple and rustic if a little bigger than most. On the inside, however, it was beautifully appointed.

He’d paid good money for polished hardwood floors, bespoke furniture able to cope with his gargantuan frame and a bathroom covered in glazed aquamarine tile as dark as an ocean floor. He had a theatre room that would have put to shame the local cinema and a kitchen befitting a gourmet chef. His bedroom wall slid open to allow him direct access to the forest around him, not that he’d used that particular perk in years.

Apart from charitable donations to nature and wildlife conservations, Ben had little else on which to spend his family’s millions. He’d decided long ago that while he would always be alone, he could still make his home his castle. Now he had a little princess to bring into his domain.

He gazed at the dozing golden wolf cub, her eyes sleepy slits. It was not like him to wax poetic about anything. He had to be careful. Yes, he would feed and rear the pup until she was strong enough to hunt for herself, but then he must let her go. She was a wolf and belonged to the wild.

Ben hesitated in the foyer of his home. What to do first? His immediate instinct was to build a nesting den from old clothes, but that didn’t take care of the little one’s need for food. She was likely starving. Who knew how long she’d been alone in the forest keeping vigil by her mother’s body. Could he give her cow’s milk or would that make her sick? She might be too young to process foreign matter. He realised this was beyond him.

Reluctant to put the cub down, Ben held her one handed while his other arm reached for his little used smartphone. The gadget was in as pristine a condition as it had been a year ago when he’d first unboxed the sleek black rectangle.

He pulled up the number he wanted and scowled at it, stalling. The pup yawned widely, revealing pink tongue and gullet, her eyes opening to gaze at him with heart-wrenching trust.

He told himself to be a man and do the right thing. He tapped the number and held the phone to his ear. It rang twice before someone picked up, the voice gruff.

Ben took a deep breath before he spoke. “Hey, dad. I know it’s been a while, but I need your help.”


	2. Running Free

“Holy hell, kid. I never thought I’d see the day when you’d have your own pup.”

Han Solo stood in Ben’s kitchen dressed as always in a long sleeved white Henley tee under a battered brown leather jacket, black jeans and black boots. There was more silver than brown in his father’s shaggy headful of hair and many more wrinkles around his eyes and mouth, but he remained as nonchalant in attitude as always.

“You look good, dad,” Ben said begrudgingly.

Han snorted in response. “Come off it, son. I look old.” 

Ben smothered a grin. “That too.”

“Always a smart mouth,” Han declared, though his tone held no heat.

“That’s what mom used to say about you.”

There was an awkward silence and both men looked away from each other. 

Leia Skywalker-Solo. It always came back to her.

Apart from periodically ensuring his father was alive and comfortable, Ben hadn’t spoken to Han in years. Grief was at the root of their schism but Han’s growing dependency on alcohol hadn’t helped. 

Neither male was able to deal with Leia’s passing away. She was a fierce maternal force in Ben’s life and her death had left him hollow on the inside. But when he looked to his father for comfort, there was none to be had. In some ways, Ben suspected Han suffered more than him over the loss. His dad was unable to express his emotions, allowing alcohol to remove his capacity to think. Mutual pain drove a rift wider than an ocean between the two men.

“Do you need a refresher?” Ben didn’t look at his father as he asked the question, instead bending over to pick up the girl cub. She squeaked in protest and then nuzzled into his neck as he pulled her against the warmth of skin and muscle.

Han’s eyes narrowed as he watched his son instinctively comfort the pup. “Well, I’ll be damned…” he muttered under his breath.

“Dad?” Ben clarified.

Han blinked away the sting of tears from his eyes and cleared his throat. “What did you say?”

“I asked if you needed my blood,” Ben repeated more bluntly this time, placing the pup on his broad stone kitchen benchtop. 

Han Solo was human. It was Ben’s mother, Leia, who had bequeathed him the shapeshifter blood that ran hot in his veins. 

Leia Skywalker had defied her father and her entire pack when she ran away to marry Han. There were so few werewolves left that a pure blood female like Leia was worth her weight in gold. Despite this, she had rebelled against centuries of tradition and chosen to produce a half breed son with her human lover.

At close to a hundred, Ben was barely out of his youth. Werewolves were long lived, some Alphas remaining in control of their pack for many centuries, or so he’d heard. Leia had wanted a good life with Han so she ensured his years were extended as well.

In wars past, shapeshifters joined the human ranks as soldiers if they found their cause worthy and blood transfusions had sometimes taken place on a battlefield. One werewolf discovered the soldier friend to whom he’d donated his blood ended up living a good thirty years longer than any other human around him. To protect their kind, werewolf blood donors rapidly became a thing of the past. 

Ben remembered watching wide-eyed as Leia set up needles and tubes, periodically transfusing her blood into his father’s veins. Han was now close to a hundred and thirty years in age but he looked about sixty.

It was part of the reason Ben kept an eye on his dad despite their acrimonious fallout. As much as they drove each other crazy, he didn’t actually want the old jackass dying on him.

To Ben’s surprise, Han shook his head. “No more wolf blood, kid. Whatever life I have left in me is all I need.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” Han said, smiling unexpectedly. “This old dog will need putting down sooner or later. Besides, I never intended to see out the centuries without your mother by my side.”

Ben said nothing, grateful to his wolf pup for a distraction as she clambered a silver fruit bowl, claws precariously digging into a bunch of bananas. He reached out to tickle her chest and she tumbled over with a growl. She leapt at his hand, paws scratching his knuckles, and Ben laughed. 

“You’re braver than you look, little one. Must’ve learned that from mama.” He realised his father was watching him closely and Ben decided to get to the point. “What did you bring me, dad?”

Han motioned at the two brown paper sacks by his feet. “Enriched formula, bottles, medicated shampoo, a couple of chew toys. We needed all of it for you.” 

“Raising me must have been a head trip,” Ben said ruefully.

“You’re not wrong,” Han grinned. “You were half little boy and half puppy. Sometimes I felt more like a vet than a father. I never knew if you’d want Legos to play with or dried meat strips to chew on.”

“Thanks for the supplies,” Ben said awkwardly. Now that he had what he needed he didn’t know what else to say. He hadn’t expected to entertain his father all night, nor reconnect with the old man however briefly.

“Leia always said if you’d been born amongst her clan the whole pack would have looked after you.”

Ben blinked at this unexpected piece of information. One of the things Han struggled to do after Leia’s death was talk about her in any context.

“As strange as it sounds, all the females would produce milk to feed you and all the males would be your babysitters. She said you would have been treated like a prince.” Han stared down at his booted feet. “I know she loved me, but she never got over missing her pack.” 

Ben felt his breath catch. He’d always assumed his mother had escaped a tradition of tyranny by running away from her father and his clan. Clearly, he’d been wrong.

The wolf pup he was stroking gave a sharp yap as his hand stilled. She tugged his fingers as if reprimanding him. Both men burst out laughing.

“She sure is a ray of sunshine,” Han chortled. “What’ll you call her?”

“Call her?” Ben said dumbly. 

“Don’t kid a kidder, son. She’s yours to name.”

Ben shook his head. “She’s a wild animal, dad. I’ll have to release her into the forest once she’s big enough to handle herself.”

“That’s a few weeks away yet,” Han responded. “You can call her something until then.”

“Fine,” Ben shrugged. “You’re the one who said she’s like sunshine. I’ll call her Ray.”

“That’s a man’s name,” Han protested.

“Rey with an e,” Ben said irritably. “In honour of mom’s favourite redhead, Anne with an e of Green Gables.”

“I still have the entire book set,” Han said fondly. He turned to the wolf pup. “What do you think, Rey?” She sat back on her haunches with a swoosh of her fluffy little tail. “I think she likes it,” Han chuckled.

His father left ten minutes later. Ben was surprised by how reluctant the old man had been to go, and how sober Han was when he showed up, but he couldn’t think about that now. 

“Let’s get you clean, little miss,” he told the wolf pup, pulling the bottle of medicated shampoo from the paper sack.

He felt a little bad as she gambolled happily beside him, following his feet into his fancy bathroom, claws clicking on glazed tile. She didn’t know what was to come.

Ben filled the sink with warm water and added some of the shampoo before sliding Rey in. The pup panicked, little feet scrambling against slick porcelain and flinging soapy water in the air. He started to laugh and she turned bright hazel eyes on him in reproach.

“I know, I know,” he murmured, remembering the chaos he created every bath time. “It’s for your own good, I promise. I need to make sure your pelt is clean.”

Rey gave a single solid, high-pitched bark, distinctly unhappy about her situation. 

“I understand no self-respecting wolf indulges in bubble baths, little one, but you’re under my roof now.”

Ben began massaging a dollop of medicated shampoo into the cub’s fur and she protested, rolling around in the water making soft puppy snarls as he scrubbed. Before long he was as drenched as she was.

“I’m gonna need a shower after this,” Ben said, more amused than annoyed. “I hope you’re happy.”

Rey’s tongue lolled out of her gaping jaw, eyes bright as she watched him.

Inevitably, his mind wandered to what could have been. If he belonged to a pack, would things like this be the norm? He suppressed a sharp ache of loneliness.

Ben had decided long ago that he wouldn’t look for other shapeshifters. In the aftermath of Leia’s passing away, he felt the safest thing was to be alone. He hadn’t even tried to find himself a girlfriend, human or otherwise, though he indulged in the occasional one-night stand when he needed an itch scratched.

He let out the soapy water and filled the sink with fresh warm water, rinsing Rey clean. The little cub was bringing to the forefront emotions he’d thought long dead and buried. Ben picked up Rey in a fluffy towel and dried the pup with a rough rub down. She emerged looking pathetic, damp fur sticking out all over the place and again he started laughing. 

She snapped her jaw at him and he tapped her on the nose reprimandingly. “Manners.”

Rey had an abundance of pep that needed taming if she was to survive in his home over the next few weeks. Ben looked forward to getting his hands on her and roughhousing to take the edge off. He would show her who was Alpha. 

He frowned to himself. He wasn’t her Alpha. What was he thinking?

He carried Rey to the living room and placed her inside a big box covered in an old blanket. It took him seconds to light the already prepared log fire, wanting to fill the room with natural warmth. 

He stood to his feet and her wide eyes latched onto him. She whimpered sadly and he could sense shades of emotion layered within her adorable cries: _Stay with me._

Ben stiffened in place. This little one, his baby girl, had an extraordinary connection with him. Their bond was forged instantaneously and now he sensed her thoughts. A pack mind. He hadn’t felt such ties since his own mother. Rey belonged to him, with him.

What? No! There was no belonging here, only a lone shapeshifter assisting distant kin.

Shaken, Ben headed to the kitchen to make Rey a bottle. She began howling even before he left the living room. Her cries grew more desperate as he fixed her milk, his heart twisting inside his chest as she called to him from her cardboard prison.

He was being a jerk. She’d lost her mother in a distressing manner, he couldn’t be sure how, and then he’d come along and rescued her like some wolf in shining armour and now he’d left her penned inside a cardboard cage. She was confused, perhaps even traumatised. 

Except wasn’t this normal? Her own mother would have left Rey in the den while she hunted, wouldn’t she? No, that wasn’t right. Leia had taught him better than that. Wolf pups required help regulating their body heat and mama usually stayed with baby while the pack hunted on their behalf. 

Ben sped up his movements, returning with the bottle of warm milk more quickly than he’d planned. He hadn’t even changed out of his wet clothes. He lifted Rey from the box and she attempted to leap from his hands into the sanctuary of his chest. 

“Woah, woah, woah,” Ben mumbled as he tried to hold onto his cub while balancing a feeding bottle of milk. “I’m still wet, sweetheart.” 

Rey didn’t care, clearly craving comfort, needing love… from him.

Ben bit back a groan. What the hell had he got himself into?

He put the bottle down on a coffee table and tipped Rey onto his steel grey couch. She scrambled atop a lighter grey cushion, eyeing him like a general on a horse about to charge into battle. 

“Wait,” Ben snapped. 

He stripped off his t-shirt and wet jeans, tossing them on the floor. The wolf pup stared at him, now dressed in a pair of navy blue trunks. Ben might transform into a thickly furred beast but as a man he was surprisingly smooth skinned, his body dense with muscle, his skin as pale as moonlight. 

He sat on the couch and Rey leapt back into his arms, pink tongue licking frantically at his neck and collar bone. Ben gave an involuntary laugh. 

“Stop it,” he said, gently scooping her into the crook of his arm and pushing the rubber teat in her face.

She caught on fast, draining the bottle so quickly he grew concerned for her poor little tummy. At last she was clean and warm and fed. 

“I’m glad I found you, sweetheart,” Ben murmured at the yawning wolf cub. “I’d hate to think of you with those two idiots from earlier.”

His hackles raised at the thought of his little miss being sold to poachers and Rey picked up on his shift in mood, growling companionably. She was too sleepy for the sound to have much bite.

Armie and Dolph. He’d have to remember the names. Takodana was small enough that someone would have heard of them. 

Tomorrow he would return to the site of Rey’s mother’s body. He wanted to examine it for cause of death and work out why the wound patterns troubled him so.

Rey gave a tiny snort and Ben looked down. She had curled up in the middle of his chest, little head pillowed against his pecs. He considered placing her back in the box in front of the fireplace but found himself unable to do so. Maybe tomorrow night.

Man, he was a sucker.

Ben stretched out on his couch without bothering the pup, drawing a shaggy green throw over the lower half of himself. His first hunt in months had resulted in the rescue of a wolf cub and a reunion with his estranged father. It had been a big night. 

Ben closed his eyes, Rey a comforting weight on his chest. He was asleep in seconds.


	3. Screaming In The Dark

The next day was spent dedicated to Rey. 

Ben was bemused by the pup’s determination to remain by his side. She followed him into the bathroom first thing in the morning and sat howling outside the frosted glass door of his shower cubicle until he reappeared more frazzled than clean. 

He gave her another bottle of milk while she lay snuggled in the crook of his arm. His own bowl of cereal was upset by an inquiring wolf cub nose and when he placed her on the ground she ran circles around his stool, occasionally gnawing at his ankles in case he’d forgotten she was there.

In an attempt to carve out time for himself, he threw a feathered toy at Rey to play with from Han’s bag of goodies. She bit and chewed and snarled, almost tearing it to pieces. Afterwards, she carried the mangled feathers around with her like a trophy, obviously proud of her ‘kill’. 

Ben sighed at the sight. He would teach Rey to hunt when she grew a little bigger, acclimatizing her to a way of life that didn’t include him. Rabbits made nice soft targets. Would he transform to educate her in the way of wolves? He hadn’t shapeshifted in years. 

At first, Ben chose not to transform because he was being careful. After a while, he found there was no reason to shapeshift at all. He’d reached a milestone in his maturity and while his flesh still ached with the need for fresh air and raw meat, the urge to change wasn’t as strong as when he’d been a moody, awkward teenager.

As time when by, it became a challenge of sorts. How long could he last without becoming furry? A long time, as it turned out. Ultimately, Ben settled into the idea that it was safer all around to remain on two legs if he could. It wasn’t that he disappeared entirely when he turned into a werewolf, but human niceties were thrown to the wind. He’d lost control once before with horrendous consequences and he never wanted to go through that again.

A wolf’s life was basic; hunt, eat, find shelter, sleep, breed… take care of the pack. Family was everything and everything was the family. A werewolf operated on the same fundamental needs but with a greater level of strength and intelligence to inform its actions. In Ben’s opinion, that awareness didn’t improve the bestial lifestyle.

The stories Leia had told him as a child described long running grudges and political manoeuvrings between Alphas of different packs. She hadn’t held back when it came to speaking the truth about their kind. There was a blood lust in shapeshifters that seemed to feed into violent action. As the centuries wore on, however, werewolf society grew more civilised.

Leia’s own father, Anakin Skywalker, was chief amongst proponents for a blend of human and werewolf life, civilising the uncivilised. No wonder his mother had no problem falling in love with a human male and turning her back on her pack. Except last night Han had said she wasn’t entirely reconciled to the fact. She still missed her kind.

Ben frowned. In all the years bringing him up, Leia never indicated she wanted reconciliation with her family, never suggested that Ben should go looking for her tribe. In fact, she’d been so close mouthed about the whole thing he didn’t even know from where her family originated. Ben supposed Han might have more information. 

Rey landed on his stomach with all four paws and he grunted, startled out of his contemplations. The pup had found higher ground by climbing onto the couch’s back rest before launching herself at him. She rolled around on his belly, tongue lolling and tail wagging.

“You think you’re funny, huh?” Ben demanded, amusement making his lips twitch.

He played with Rey for the next hour, pinning her to plush carpet with his hand, tumbling her over little mounds he created using cushions. She growled and snarled and yipped, pouncing at him as if she were ten times his size and not the other way around. She had the heart of a lioness, this one. Or an alpha.

When she grew tired, he gave her another bottle of milk and contemplated the thawed steak sitting on his kitchen counter. He placed Rey on the polished stone benchtop and waited hopefully. She sniffed the meat and looked disdainfully back at him. Ben groaned out loud. 

At the time when Leia was doing it for him, he hadn’t thought much about it. It wasn’t weird at all. But now that he had to do it for Rey…

He took a bite out of the raw meat, razor sharp incisors easily severing fat, tendon and sinew. He chewed for a minute before spitting it out. The wolf cub looked askance at the mangled piece of cow flesh.

“If you were in your pack,” Ben said, leaning over her, “that meat would be regurgitated from the stomachs and throats of your elders. This is a slight improvement, isn’t it?”

Rey gave him a look before delicately snapping up the morsel. Ben kept going until she’d eaten three quarters of the steak, by which point the pup was yawning again. He let her snuggle on his lap while he read a book, waiting for her heart rate to slow and her breathing to deepen. It didn’t take very long.

Ben laid Rey’s sleeping form in the box, nestled amongst folds of blankets. She twitched but didn’t open her eyes. If he wasn’t home before she woke there’d be hell to pay, but he told himself he wasn’t about to be held hostage by an itty bitty baby girl.

Right.

Ben retrieved his waterproof pants and grey sweater. He wasn’t intending to hunt but nevertheless chose to remain barefoot. He found it easier than acclimatising his huge feet to a pair of Air Jordans. He was reluctant to leave Rey but told himself not to be ridiculous. She was perfectly safe and he would only be gone a short while.

He wanted to examine Rey’s mother’s carcass before night fell. As it was, he should have left first thing in the morning. Who knew what kind of insects had found the body and whether carrion birds had begun feasting on the flesh? Such things did not bother Ben. It was the circle of life. Nature, red in tooth and claw. 

Ben set off at a loping run. It was late in the day and at best he had an hour’s worth of daylight left. His heightened senses were able to provide him sight even in the dark, but he wanted to be sure he didn’t miss anything. Twenty minutes later, he reached the tree under which had lain a mother wolf’s slain body. She was gone. 

Ben circled the area, searching the immediate vicinity. For a moment he questioned himself, his memory of the location, but he knew he was right. Not only could he scent traces of old blood under the tree, but he could also smell Rey. She’d been frightened, alone in the dark beside the unmoving shell of someone she’d loved.

Ben’s heart thumped hard against his ribcage, rage rising clear through his feelings of compassion. He longed to shapeshift, to wreak havoc on the one who’d killed Rey’s mama… but he couldn’t. As usual he was helpless. Weak. 

Memories confounded him. The day Leia died he’d been too far away to assist her, too useless to save his own mother. Ben clutched the nearby pine with a hand so strong he tore a chunk of bark out of its side. He glanced at the white flesh of the tree and saw his nails had darkened, lengthened, sharpened.

He had to get a hold of himself. Revisiting his mother’s death helped no one. 

Something or someone had removed the carcass of an adult wolf. Not even scavengers could strip flesh off bone so quickly. Not only that, there were no drag marks on the grass to indicate a bigger animal had gotten its teeth into the body. 

He frowned, trying to puzzle out the kill site. If the mother wolf was slaughtered by a grizzly, why hadn’t the victorious mammal eaten its fill then? No predator killed its prey only to leave behind a feast. Had he been wrong? Was it a human hand that had dealt the death blow after all? Then why hadn’t the she-wolf been covered in bullet wounds?

As if he’d conjured up the two men from the night before, Ben heard the sound of voices drawing closer. A low growl rumbled in his throat.

“Are you sure it’s here, Armie?” someone asked, hesitant and unsure.

“Trust me, Dolph,” his friend replied, more confident than he had a right to be.

Ben crept around the side, staying in the shadows. It was easy enough to do since the intruders weren’t even trying to be quiet. They weren’t hunting live targets this evening, Ben realised. Their intended quarry was already dead. 

“I wish we hadn’t come back,” the one called Dolph said miserably.

His ginger-haired friend threw him an irritated look. “A wolf pelt will fetch us hundreds of dollars. Come on, bud. You know we gotta be cashed up if we’re gonna impress the ladies.”

Dolph nodded reluctantly. “The way she’d been staring at ya, I reckon Gwen wouldn’t mind if you bought her a beer tonight.”

“I know you like Gwen, Dolph. Plenty of other fish in the sea for me,” Armie responded, frowning down at a GPS tracker.

Ben had been impressed by the man’s ability to retrace his steps until then. Technology- it always gave humans an unfair advantage. 

And Dolph had mentioned a woman by the name of Gwen. He wondered if the shorter man meant Gwendolyn Phasma? The statuesque blonde had her fair share of admirers in their small town. Ben tucked away this piece of information for later.

“I don’t see nothin’,” Dolph said, sounding annoyed.

Armie had reached the grove of trees and was scowling. He smacked his GPS on its side but that obviously made no difference. “Neither do I,” he snapped. “Stupid thing. Spent decent money on the gadget. I might as well have used the map function on my phone, for all the good it’s done me.”

“So we can go home?” Dolph asked hopefully. 

“I came here for a pelt and I’m gonna find one, damnit.”

Ben was growing bored listening to the two men bicker and had almost decided to leave when he saw Dolph pale. 

“Tell me you’re not suggesting what I think you’re suggesting.”

“That was a good size bear we saw on our way in,” Armie said, reaching for his shotgun. “Come on, it’s almost twilight. We don’t have long before we won’t be able to see a thing.”

“You’re insane,” Dolph spat. “We’d need perfect aim to safely take down an animal that size…”

“You think the shotgun’s all I brought?” Armie sniffed. “I have plenty more firepower in my bagpack. The bear was sunning itself by Lake Nymeve. Let’s go check it out and if he’s no longer there we can head back to town.”

Dolph gave a reluctant nod.

Ben watched the two men walk away, the lowering sun already creating deep shadows in the wooded area where he stood. They were dumber than they appeared if they intended to take on a full grown brown bear while rapidly losing light. Ben was tempted to let them blunder into their fate when it occurred to him that the animal they’d seen might be the one he was after as well. Was this the bear who’d killed Rey’s mother? Ben hesitated, but at last he went after the humans. 

Who was the bigger fool, he wondered, the ones walking willingly into a dangerous situation or the idiot following behind? 

As it turned out, he was too late reaching the shores of Lake Nymeve. He was still in the woods when he heard gunshots ring in the cool evening air. 

“Damnit,” Ben growled. 

He took off running and quickly reached the forest edge. It led to a clearing of white pebbled stones that preceded a deep blue body of lake water. Ben bit back a groan at the sight that greeted him. The animal the hunters had shot at was no male grizzly, fat and lazy. The men had targeted an angry mother bear, two hefty cubs by her side. 

It didn’t look like she’d been hit. As Ben watched, the she-bear huffed and chuffed before taking off at a full run. He tensed in the shadows, hoping Dolph and Armie were far away enough to be safe. Another shot sounded, echoing in the lake clearing. Another miss.

The men had taken aim at the grizzly from across the lake using an illegal high powered semi-automatic rifle. Ben wished the bear all the luck in the world. Except two dead hunters, even cowardly ones trespassing on his property, would cause complications. And heaven forbid if local news found out about them. He’d be dodging choppers with cameras for weeks.

Making sure Dolph and Armie had dropped over the side of a ridge and were out of sight, Ben emerged from the tree line. He lifted his head and produced a decent howl, arresting the sow in her murderous rampage. Big brown eyes turned toward him. Ben stood between mama bear and the two cubs and he instantly realised his mistake. 

He turned and ran into the dense forest as the sow came at him, as unstoppable as a runaway freight train. Fear for her young ones powered her thick, muscular legs. She barrelled through brush and trees trying to get to him. Ben knew she was catching up and soon. 

He only had one option.

There was no time for him to peel off his clothes. In the split second he made up his mind he knew this would get ugly. It had been years since he’d given in to his inner wolf.

He burst into a clearing, turning around just as the bear came storming through the trees behind him. His pulse pounded like a drum in his ears. The sow’s two cubs appeared in her wake, bumbling along as if they were harmless cartoon creatures though they were equally capable of taking out a man. The she-bear roared and stomped, preparing herself for attack.

Ben clenched his fists and tilted his head back. He let out a howl that brought the sow to a startled standstill. This time he wasn’t approximating a sound to get her attention. This time he let out a yell of pure adrenaline.

The transformation came over him as fast as a heartbeat, as vital as his next breath, as hard as rolling thunder. Ben shapeshifted and it was like fire in his blood, quicksilver in his veins, lightning scorching down his crackling spin. He shuddered and stretched, body shifting and expanding, clothes ripping. The transition from his human form to his werewolf self was savage. Uncontrolled. Abandoned.

Sometimes he could regulate the process, but not today. He’d been human, limited, stifled, contained for too long. This release was uninhibited, unrestrained… magical. He was damn near frenetic with the change.

The sow took a step backwards, her cubs following suit. Ben felt his consciousness shift from the irritable logic of an adult man to something far more instinctual and emotive. His human mind melted, moulded, enhanced sensation battling concrete thought. Teeth and fur and muscle and sinew and claw grew.

_Bear._

The singular thought dominated his mind, pure in its purpose. He caught a brown-hazed glimpse of the sow before the killing urge took control. It had been so long… too long. Saliva dripped off his fangs. He growled low in his throat.

_Red setting sun on thick black fur.  
Paws on dry grass.  
Smell of dirt and scent of pine.  
Humans humans—need to move need to hunt—_

Every one of his senses heightened to the point of overload. It was too much too fast. He smelled the bear and the forest and an older scent of a pup in his paws and it all had him spinning.

_Get a grip._

Ben scented the bear’s fear, smelled the piddle spilling out of her cubs. They were terrified. It took a moment for him to realise his body was the wrong size—too big. He was bigger than her, bigger than an adult grizzly. He was a black wolf so tall he could swallow the sky.

When did he get so big? Was he this size the last time he transformed? He didn’t think so.

Ben staggered and snarled, unused to the length of his own legs. It was enough to send the bear running without a fight. She gathered her cubs and herded them away, but Ben took a loping run at them regardless.

He was confused and disoriented. If he’d been any steadier on his feet he would have fought the bear, tearing her apart just to feel the gush of blood down his throat. Instead, he made himself stop, lurching his enormous shaggy body towards a copse of trees.

Ben let out a long, mournful howl. The bear and her cubs disappeared.

He swayed and howled again just to hear himself. His thoughts flickered back to the softer, sweeter ‘awoo’ of the little girl pup he’d left behind. Even now he thought of her. The distant mountains sent a gentle breeze that ruffled his fur, soothing some of the ache from his transformation.

Ben was trapped in the chaotic space between man and beast. He was a male without a pack, as alone as he’d ever been. His eyes fluttered shut and he heaved a sigh.

He wanted his girl.

“What the hell was that?”

“Armie, the bear is back there. Where’re you goin’?”

“I swear I saw something… It was big and black.”

“What’re you talking about?” Dolph sounded concerned.

Armie not so much. “I think there’s a black bear.”

Ben heard Armie’s shotgun being chambered, the sharp click making his ears twitch. He was too unsettled to transform back into his human body. Besides, he wasn’t sure how he’d explain himself if the two men found him naked in the middle of the forest.

How do you hide a wolf as big as a truck? You don’t.

Ben slunk between towering trees, enjoying the minutiae of smells that filled his nose despite himself. He was never freer than when he was a wolf. A few more steps and he’d be gone…

The gunshot sent a flock of birds squawking into the air. Pain exploded in his side. A red film of rage and violence slid over his eyes.

_Maim, kill, hurt.  
No.  
Destroy, bleed, finish.  
No!_

Using every ounce of self-control left in his animal brain, Ben loped deeper into the forest, trailing blood as he went.

_Pain, ache, hurt._

Blood gushed from the wound in his side. A lot of blood. He grew concerned.

The last thing Ben remembered was the ground rushing up the meet him.


	4. Howl When We're Apart

“Hey, kid, wake up!”

_Human, male, familiar…_

“Son, I need you to wake up now!”

Amber eyes opened, his enhanced pupils able to see in the dark of night. A hand shook his haunches and Ben let out a low growl.

Something small and fluffy and sweet-smelling launched itself at him, lick, lick, licking his face and ears and neck.

_Wolf, female… Rey…_

She spoke, her voice as clear as sun-lit honey in his mind. 

_Awake, Alpha. We must go home._

“Ben, I need you to change back. You’re too big for me to carry in this form.”

The werewolf was offended at the idea he would need carrying at all. He attempted to stand, but the pain in his side was like a rocky outcropping tearing into his soft underbelly.

Ben focused his chaotic mind, his thoughts confused by both pain and animalistic euphoria at being set free. His body resisted the change but he forced his cells to submit… obey… 

He turned limb by limb, hair shortening, claws retracting, muscles shrinking. Soon he lay gasping on his side, shivering from the trauma of a shotgun wound. He was naked and the man who’d been talking to him… Han… father… wrapped a blanket around his shoulders. He was used to looking after stupid young shapeshifters.

“Dad…”

“I know,” Han grunted, helping Ben sit up before hauling him to his feet. He groaned volubly. “Did you have to grow so big?”

Rey ran circles at their feet, quiet but intense. Ben could feel the waves of concern coming off her.

“How did you find me?” he asked, his voice a thready whisper.

“Later,” Han snapped, walking him toward the house. “We have a long way to go yet. And maybe while we’re at it, you can tell me when your werewolf body got to be that huge?”

Both men fell silent, concentrating on limping their way out of the forest. It seemed to take forever, Ben’s mind a muddled swirl of hurt and adrenaline. He was grateful when he saw the lights of his cabin shining in the darkness. Rey ran ahead and stood at the door like a sentry. 

_Alpha is home._

Ben frowned, except he was already frowning, so he frowned some more, eyebrows drawn together and teeth gritted as he weathered every jolt of pain, leaning on his father’s shoulder for support. Had he imagined the honeyed female voice in his mind? Was he delirious and comforting himself with illusory words from a wolf cub?

He propped himself against the front door as Han covered his expensive couch in an old blanket. The chunky piece of furniture was more of a day bed, really. Ben had grown frustrated with the plethora of tiny matchstick chairs and tables he encountered on a daily basis. 

It wasn’t just that he was tall, he was wide and thick, his body a thing of wonder for the women in town. He’d taken to wearing flannel shirts and worn jeans just to disguise his musculature.

His father helped him over and Ben sprawled flat on the couch.

“Maybe I should shift,” he said, his voice a gruff snarl rather than its usual smooth timbre. Remnants of his werewolf self stayed with him for hours after a change, heightening his reflexes, darkening his eyes. 

“Not yet,” Han said.

“You know I heal faster when I’m…”

“Of course, I know!” his father yelled. 

Rey let out a high-pitched bark followed by a lower register growl. The cub came to stand between Han and a prone Ben, ears up and teeth bared. Both men looked at her in astonishment.

“It’s alright, little one,” Ben grunted, dropping a hand to the floor so she could lick his fingers. “The old man’s worried about me, is all.”

Han shot him a look of surprise and Ben shrugged, instantly wishing he hadn’t as the movement tugged on his wounds. He couldn’t imagine what his father must have gone through seeing him bleeding on a forest floor, just like Leia so many years ago. Except until yesterday, if anyone had asked, he would have said Han Solo didn’t give a damn about his only child.

“You’re covered in shotgun spray,” Han said, his tone brusque. “I’ll dig out the pellets and then you can shapeshift if you like. It’ll shorten the healing process if you don’t have to expel shrapnel.”

“Okay,” Ben gasped, another wave of pain making him lightheaded.

Han went to find Ben’s first aid kit. He’d been taught to avoid hospitals since any tests would reveal problematic anomalies, resulting in questions he could not answer. Because of this, his personal medical supplies were comprehensive. 

His father returned with a hefty white case, foraging through it and locating a pair of curved forceps to extract the pellets in Ben’s side. Han bent over him and got started, dropping shrapnel one by one into a steel dish. Already the bleeding had staunched, his werewolf DNA knitting together torn flesh at a speed that was, quite frankly, inhuman. 

As his father worked, the soft golden pup remained by Ben’s side, occasionally whimpering in sympathy if he grunted in pain. Every time he opened his eyes, Rey was watching him intently.

“Has she been fed?” Ben asked, apropos to nothing.

“I’ll take care of it,” Han said, dropping another pellet into the bowl with a clink. “I came by to check up on you two. Good thing I did.”

“How did you get in?”

“You gave me your security codes years ago when you first built this place.”

Ben turned his head to look at his dad. “You kept those? I remember you threatening to burn everything that used to be mine in the old house. I’m surprised a piece of paper survived.”

Han said nothing and Ben realised his father’s memory of the argument might be hazy since he’d been hammered on whiskey at the time. He hissed as the old man went digging for a particularly deeply lodged lead ball.

“What happened?” Han demanded. “Whoever took a shot at you wasn’t close by, otherwise the damage they caused would have been much worse.”

“Hunters,” Ben said shortly. “I went back to examine Rey’s mother’s body since something about her wounds didn’t look right. Instead I came across a couple of morons who tried to kill a mama bear. All they did was rile her up, so I distracted the sow and then shapeshifted to scare her away.” 

“But the two men were still hanging around? Did they see you?” Han paused in his work.

Ben hesitated. “I don’t know. Maybe.”

Han muttered a curse under his breath. “That’s all we need- tales of a black wolf as big as a house in Takodana forest. It’ll bring out the crazies.” 

“Maybe I need to have a word with the sheriff about cracking down on trespassers. This is private land, after all.”

“There are too many points of entry for local law enforcement to do anything,” Han mumbled, picking at another pellet. 

It was an old argument; one he’d had with Leia as well. Acres of woodland were all well and good, but security was problematic in an area as large and flat as the one Ben owned. There was barely any higher ground, which was what Han had always wanted. They could have built their home atop a hill and spotted visitors coming from miles away.

“Mom never cared about security, did she?” Ben murmured. “She loved Takodana forest and that was all there was to it.”

“Reminded her of home,” Han agreed. “Your mother… she was a brilliant strategist but all she wanted was a happy family. I fear it made her short-sighted.”

“Excuse me?” The hand that was idly stroking the top of Rey’s fluffy head twitched.

Han sniffed. “Once she realised her father wasn’t coming after her, Leia stopped worrying about outside forces.”

“What outside forces did she have to worry about?” Ben demanded, his tone sharp. What was his father even saying?

“Probably nothing. I’m just rambling, kid.”

Han went back to tending to Ben’s wounds and the younger man scowled at his father’s grey head. Between the pain and blood loss and the shock his cells had undergone shapeshifting so quickly in the space of hours, Ben couldn’t focus. He let go of Han’s words, distracted as the wolf pup gently gnawed on his still hand. 

Ben sighed, scratching Rey between drooping ears. She was looking tired as well, though he suspected the cub was making a valiant effort to stay awake for him. 

“I had to chew up meat for her today,” he said abruptly, surprising himself by sharing this piece of information. “I remembered mom doing it for me, so I tried it out on Rey. It worked.”

“You’ve bonded with the pup,” Han said, his tone strange.

“I suppose. She’s a perky little thing…”

“No, Ben, I’m not suggesting you’re close. I’m telling you that you’ve bonded with Rey.”

Ben winced as the old man began wiping clean his wounds with cotton swabs soaked in disinfectant. “Dad…”

“Hrumph?”

“How did you find me?”

Han’s gaze shifted from his son’s bloody side to the sleepy cub flopped on the rug beside Ben’s outstretched hand.

“I knocked at your door,” he said slowly, packing away the medical kit. There would be no point in bandaging the wounds since Ben’s shapeshifter DNA had already begun its good work. “No one answered, so I started to walk away. That’s when I heard her. Rey.”

Ben half sat up and then immediately laid back down again. Too soon. “What was wrong with her?” he asked through gritted teeth.

“She was going crazy, scratching at the door, yapping and hollering. Crying.” 

Still seated, Han unconsciously rubbed circles on Ben’s broad back. The younger man had a vivid flashback to when his father would do the same thing for him as a boy, trying to soothe him to sleep. 

Anger ricocheted through Ben, sudden and dark. He hadn’t seen the old man in years and suddenly they were returning to patterns of behaviour from his childhood? Ben moved away from Han’s touch by using Rey as an excuse, picking her up and laying the pup on his blanketed lap. 

“Once I’d found the security code to your front door and unlocked it, Rey took off like a bat outta hell. At first I thought she wanted to return to the wild, but then she stopped at the forest edge and turned around, howling and whimpering until I listened.” Han paused, drawing a deep breath. “Rey desperately wanted me to follow her. She knew you were in trouble.”

“Come on, dad, really?” Ben said sceptically. “Rey’s not a sheepdog. Don’t give me that, ‘Timmy’s down the well,’ garbage.”

Han stiffened. “Why not?” he snapped. “You bonded with your mother, sharing thoughts and experiences.”

“A similar bond between me and the cub would make Rey a shapeshifter,” Ben snapped right back. “There’s no way…”

“How d’you know?” Han interrupted belligerently. 

The wolf pup in question made a high-pitched yowling sound as she yawned and settled into the crook of Ben’s neck for a sleep. The two men abruptly stopped yelling at one another, the silence between them growing awkward.

Han took the opportunity to clean up and Ben watched as his father got rid of the shotgun pellets and bloodied swabs, packing up and putting away the first aid kit. He almost wished he wouldn’t, wanting the old man to leave. Watching him shuffle through his home made Ben realise how much his father had slowed down.

He was beginning to suspect something about Han that he dared not question. Too many broken promises and angry words lay between them for Ben to so easily offer an olive branch. Instead, he opted for a test of sorts.

“There’s a bottle of Belvedere in the freezer. Could you fix me a glass, dad? You’re welcome to a sip as well.”

Truth was after watching his father drink away his portion of Leia’s considerable fortune in the form of whiskey, Ben couldn’t stand hard liquor. His habit of keeping a good quality bottle of vodka in the freezer was a trick of his mother’s. Leia preferred it as a disinfectant and all-round cure for the winter chill. Ben might sip a cold beer with a friend to keep up appearances but he preferred not to drink at all, making his chosen profession unintentionally ironic.

Han returned with a milk bottle and a couple of inches of vodka in Ben’s ‘Bartender: because freakin’ awesome is not a job title’ mug. “Nice stoneware,” he smirked.

Ben downed the vodka like it was cough syrup, making Rey mewl as he shifted her away from his neck. “It was a gift.”

“Good to know someone in your life has a sense of humour,” Han muttered.

Ben stiffened where he lay. It was a common gripe of Han’s. Relax, Ben. You’re too serious, Ben. Stop acting like my mother, Ben. I’ll drink if I want to, Ben… 

He felt a surge of anger as memories resurfaced and knew his father had seen the emotion on his face as well.

“Time I get going,” Han said, already heading towards the front door. “You gonna be okay?”

“I just need to rest,” Ben replied, resisting the urge to say something cutting. What was the point? “Um, thanks, dad. Really.”

Han nodded, closing and locking the door behind him. 

Ben reached for Rey and offered her the milk. She drank, slow and sleepy. Watching her feed soothed him. Once the pup was done, Ben reached behind him and clicked off the table lamp. His father had thoughtfully turned off the pendant lights hanging from exposed wooden rafters. Crackling flames picked up golden highlights in the pup’s fur.

Rey raised heavy-lidded eyes as if to check on him. She was surprisingly attuned to his emotions and Ben wondered if his Han was right. Was Rey more than just a wolf?

Impossible. How could a werewolf cub appear out of nowhere? Besides which, Rey’s mother had looked pure animal, lacking the traits of a shapeshifter. 

Unless her mate was a werewolf.

Damn. That was a thought.

One incredible thing had already happened- Han had walked away without touching a drop of Ben’s vodka. There was a time when his father would have swiped the whole bottle of Belvedere for himself.

Was Han on the wagon? When had that happened? Ben dared not believe it. He shook his head, unable to contemplate his father’s change in life choices right that moment. He was too damn exhausted. 

Ben considered shapeshifting to speed up his healing process but decided against it in the end. He could already feel the flesh around his wounds tighten and itch, his accelerated healing abilities working.

He perched Rey atop his bare chest. The wolf pup made a contented little sound as she nuzzled against warm skin, settling back into a deep sleep. The way Ben felt watching her was the completely opposite to the desolate loneliness that had overtaken him when he’d transformed in the forest. He was growing suspicious of the tan fur baby who’d so fervently latched onto him.

Ben closed his eyes. Soon it would be dawn. He had a whole day ahead of him to test his father’s theory.


	5. Taste Your Beating Heart

“Please say you’re coming into work tonight.”

Ben bit back a groan, still half asleep despite it being noon. Rey was gnawing on his toe with a vigour that indicated she might actually eat it for breakfast. Or lunch, as it were.

“I’ll be there, Rose,” Ben said, trying to make his voice sound less gruff.

“You promise?”

He grimaced at the ceiling. “Yeah, Rosie, I promise.”

She hung up and Ben momentarily laid his head back down. Unfortunately, the other female in his life was demanding he take action as well.

Ben sat up with a grunt, blood stained blankets sliding off his naked body. He examined his side and discovered a layer of new skin covering the wounds. His flank was stiff but the grinding pain that he’d suffered last night was gone.

Rey yipped, demanding attention. He ran a hand through his haystack of thick black hair, saw streaks of dried blood down his legs and wondered how bad he actually looked.

“Good thing you’re not a human woman, sweetheart,” he muttered, leaning down to ruffle the pup’s ears. “You’d have run screaming by now.”

The wolf cub trotted beside him as he stopped at his laundry room and shoved blankets into a washing machine. He started a load hoping to get the blood off them. If that didn’t work, he’d simply use the items for his pup to nest on.

Next came a long, hot shower with Rey whining and scratching at the glass door while he scrubbed himself down. Ben was tempted to let her in just so he could tease her with the water but desisted. She would probably go crazy and make a mess.

The shower went a long way to making him feel human again, so to speak. He was better than he’d expected, his cells still humming from shapeshifting. He’d almost forgotten how glorious it was to be in his werewolf form, free and wild, strong and lithe, one with nature and certain of his place in the circle of life. Predator not prey.

Had he been wrong to deny his inner beast for so long? Sure, he could be dangerous to anyone who crossed his path, but there must be middle ground. It was why he owned Takodana forest, for crying out loud. 

_Never forget,_ his conscience whispered. All it had taken was one uncontrolled moment to damn near ruin his life. He had certainly ruined someone else’s.

Leia was far more philosophical about shapeshifting, regularly taking Ben hunting in the late evening so they could catch rabbit and waterfowl. Once, they’d even worked together to take down a deer. It had been instinctual, the hunt a natural flow between mother and son. Ben sighed. He never stopped missing her.

He paused in the act of getting dressed, grief filling his lungs like poisoned gas, making it hard to breathe. Rey, who’d been tearing into a mislaid sock as if it were her mortal enemy, paused in her efforts and trotted over to him. She rubbed against his ankles, whining.

He smiled, shaking off the heaviness. “It’s alright, baby girl. Alpha’s okay.”

Ben heard his own words and refused to consider their implications. 

He fed Rey first; the little cub in her rightful place in his arms while she inhaled a bottle of milk. He followed this with raw chunks of beef steak, finishing the rest of the bloody meat himself. Ben chased his unorthodox snack with a bowl of Fruit Loops.

He watched Rey play in and out of a shaft of sunlight as he ate. She was already putting on weight, her fur glossy and eyes bright. It wouldn’t be long before he could take her hunting; cubs learned by imitating their elders. But first things first, he needed to take a closer look at his little girl.

After breakfast, Ben took Rey for a walk in the forest. She ambled along happily beside him, tail up. Han’s words echoed in his mind and Ben wanted to assess the pup for himself. His test was unique and not fit for human eyes.

He had to create distance between himself and the cabin just in case they were discovered. Supposing someone saw a big black wolf with a tiny tan pup, it was better they made no connection between that and his home. He scooped up Rey and tucked her inside his shirt. One arm holding her in place, he went on a loping run. She yipped irritably as she was jostled against his chest, but his long, muscular legs ate up the miles at a pace she wouldn’t have been able to maintain.

When he judged he’d gone far enough, Ben placed Rey on the cool grass. He focused his heightened senses around him but all he could hear were forest sounds, his nose picking up verdant smells. The pup excitedly began to play, chasing her own tail around a fallen tree trunk. She occasionally paused to check on Ben, making sure the big man wasn’t going anywhere without her.

“Let’s do this,” Ben said out loud.

He began to strip, folding his shirt, pants and jocks in a pile. Now that he was gloriously naked, Rey was staring again. He grinned at her, baring his canines, and she cocked her pretty head. Curious, she tumbled off the log and drew closer.

Ben tilted his head back and called on his werewolf blood. The transformation was slower this time, more deliberate. His pale skin split with a gush of fluid. Despite the glorious rush of freedom that followed, that was the part he hated the most. His bones crackled, thickening and lengthening, new hide sprouting ebony fur. His face stretched, a snout forming, his teeth so big they protruded from his maw. His muscles thickened, bulging, his limbs as strong as tree trunks, as indestructible as rock.

He was built for the hunt, to kill and destroy. It was what troubled him the most about his werewolf form. Why else would he look like this unless it was in pursuit of death?

This shift was easier, his body still humming with wolf traits from his last transformation. His mind was clearer though still working on instinct. Ben shook out his lithe form in an all over shiver and raised his muzzle, howling to the treetops above.

_Blue skies clear air sunshine pinecones._  
_Baby girl little one soft small defenceless.  
Mine. Mine. Mine—_

His amber gazed locked onto Rey and she immediately dropped to the grass, laying down her ears and tucking in her tail, lowering her head to the ground. Now that he’d shapeshifted, she was barely as big as his paw. He felt a human pang of distress over her reaction, but overriding that feeling was the exultant rush of an Alpha male with his cub. He was in charge and she knew it.

There was nothing quite like being a werewolf. Ben had seen Hollywood depictions of his kind and was surprised that most were simply bigger, nastier versions of their natural wolf cousin. The truth was a werewolf was somewhere between human and wolf, a large, thickly muscled, shaggy biped. Ben was able to stand on two legs if he preferred, able to use his front paws like hands, his claws aiding with dexterity. When he’d hunted with Leia he dropped to all fours since it was quicker. He could even speak, though his wolf muzzle made the formation of words difficult. His low tone as a man turned into an even deeper bass drum when he shapeshifted. Again, Leia had preferred to communicate using their natural telepathic link, the pack mind Han had mentioned .

Ben stretched out on the grass like a wolf, paws forward and noble head held high, though he could have just as easily lounged back like a man. He waited. Rey ventured forward after a few moments. She crawled over to him on her belly, hazel eyes big in her little face. She paused in front of him and Ben snapped at the air above her head. She jumped and he shook with soundless amusement.

Her gaze narrowed in awareness. She stepped even closer between his forepaws, cautiously sniffing at his thickly furred chest. Ben gave her a sloppy lick and she fell over from the force of his tongue, the fur on her face a damp mess. She yapped at him and he growled back, the deep rumble silencing her.

It took her a few seconds to regain her gumption. Rey shuffled forward and continued nosing through his fur, eventually settling herself against him with a soft huff.

 _Alpha._ Her voice sounded like a silver bell ringing in his consciousness.

 _Little brat,_ Ben responded, teasing.

She looked at him curiously, sitting down between his paws. _What is that?_

Ben sent images through her mind of Rey gnawing on his fingers, climbing over cushions to fearlessly leap at him, flying into his embrace after they’d been seperated by a five minute shower and generally acting like she owned him.

Her tongue lolled out cheekily. _It is a good thing._

 _I could eat you as a snack,_ Ben warned, though his threat had no teeth.

She ignored him, climbing up his back and nestling in the crook of his neck. He stiffened, wondering what the little pup was up to. His head was bigger than her fluffy body, but she had the courage of an entire pack of wolves.

Rey pressed her cold, wet nose into his fur, her little tongue finding the inside of his ear. She licked steadily and Ben growled soft and low. He laid his head down and closed his eyes, letting her tend to him. He’d never had a female by his side, not as an adult werewolf.

His mind drifted back to his mother. He’d been a teenager when Leia was killed.

His mother had taken him into the forest to hunt. They became seperated but it didn’t worry Ben. In werewolf form he and Leia inhabited each other’s thoughts. He’d scented deer and grown excited, wandering away from mom. She’d allowed it. After all, he was almost a full blown adult male. There would come a time when he’d be the one leading the hunt, or so she’d said.

And then the pleasant buzzing of his mother’s thoughts in the background of his mind altered, turning into a psychic knife of raw pain. A red mist fell over his brain. Ben jerked to a stop, sensing the destruction of the being he loved most in all the world.

It was hazy now, but he remembered turning and running back to where Leia should have been, running faster than he ever had in his entire life, his body a streak of black amongst towering trees, his lungs burning from a lack of air. He saw her body by the side of an idyllically babbling brook, bloody and mangled.

As unbelievable as it was, he’d known the truth even before he smelled the blood. Their pack mind was ended. He was alone, desolate and abandoned. The sudden isolation was unbearable, soul-destroying. Ben had fallen to the ground, his own legs unable to bear his weight.

_Mother._

She was gone, her life snuffed out so quickly Ben was unable to comprehend it. He kept vigil by Leia’s body for hours. Just after dawn broke, a hunter appeared, a brace of pheasants in his hand. Ben would never forgive himself for what happened next. Crazed with grief, he killed the man. Afterwards, the two things became connected in his mind. The hunter had murdered his mother. Except the poor man hadn’t, had he? Then what had killed Leia? Why was he only now asking these questions?

Han had finally found them, Ben still curled around his mother’s dead form, the hunter’s butchered corpse beginning to attract flies. His father’s grief was unbearable to witness.

Ben’s life was never the same again. He was never the same.

He drew a deep breath as he faced memories he’d struggled to revisit as anything more than distorted nightmares. He saw more clearly how traumatised he’d been by the moment and its bloody aftermath. Han and Ben dug two graves that day- one to hide the evidence of his murder and the second to bury the light of their lives.

Rey changed positions on his neck, so light he barely felt the tiny pup. She began cleaning his other ear and Ben squeezed his eyes shut in wolfish ecstasy. The low rumble in his chest reflected his pleasure.

Ben realised he was processing his grief because of Rey. She grounded him to his present, the earth and sun and air, alleviating the overwhelming horror of all he’d endured. When Rey was done tending to him, she rolled off his back and curled between his forepaws, close enough to his chest that she was able to breathe in unison with him. Her Alpha.

Ben’s thoughts turned to his responsibilities as protector and provider. The cub was still a skinny thing, needing fattening up. He rose and trotted deeper inside the forest, Rey scrambling to follow. It wasn’t long before he found quarry. He killed a squirrel with a snap of his jaws and ripped the carcass to pieces. She ate directly from his jaws, enjoying fresh meat.

_Thank you, Alpha._

_You will learn to hunt for yourself._

_Yes, Alpha._

_Hmph._

Ben pressed his nose into the soft fur of Rey’s underbelly. The pup quivered, her little heart hammering in his ears. He breathed her in, allowing her presence to soothe the lack he’d suffered for so long.

It had been hard, nigh impossible, shapeshifting knowing his mother’s cool mind was no longer there to meet his. Easier to stay a man than be a lone wolf. Rey’s thoughts, her presence and language, were different to Leia’s. Still feminine but young and somehow mischeivous. Ben was intrigued. Was he forming a pack mind with another werewolf, or was she an intelligent animal with whom he could commune?

When in doubt, ask.

_Can you shapeshift, little one?_

_What is that?_ Rey looked at him with innocent eyes.

Show, don’t tell, Ben decided. He shifted back to his human form, slow and steady. Rey sat watching with avid curiousity until he was pale and smooth and two legged once more. The pretty girl pup gave a soft _‘awoo’,_ making him smile.

“Still me, little one,” he assured her, reaching for his clothes to get dressed.

_But now you have no pelt. It is strange._

Ben raised his eyebrows. Her voice remained in his psyche. Interesting.

 _Can you do the same?_ he asked.

 _Why would I?_ she sniffed in reply.

He smirked. Fair enough. Perhaps he had his answer.

Ben bundled Rey back inside his shirt, the pup more resigned to the experience this time as he ran them both home. He fed her another warm bottle before he changed for work. Red flannel shirt, worn blue jeans, sturdy black boots.

“I’m going out,” he told Rey who was perched on his shoe chewing the laces, “but I’ll be back soon.”

_I will go with you, Alpha._

“No,” Ben snapped. Enough was enough. He was a grown man slash werewolf with plenty of responsibilities and he couldn’t allow one small wolf cub to hijack his entire life.

Rey howled as if he’d stabbed her, the sound going straight through his heart.

“Baby, please…”

Hazel eyes stared him down. _Don’t leave me, Alpha._

Ben groaned. “I’m going into town, sweetheart. Lots of humans, do you understand? It’s not safe for you.”

 _I’ll be your good girl, Alpha._ Those eyes turned beseeching.

Ben considered her request. Could he really take a wolf pup with him? Already his brain was working it out. He had to keep Rey close by. The area where he worked was fenced in and it wasn’t like the boss would complain.

“Alright,” he conceded, “but you do as I say.”

Her little tail started to wag.

Rey leapt into the passenger side of Ben’s truck as if she’d been doing it her entire life. It took her a little longer to scramble onto the seat but she got there in the end. The pup jumped over his stick shift and curled up on his lap. He drove into town one handed, his fingers in her fur.

Ben saw lights glimmering in the distance before it occurred to him that he’d been guilt tripped into making a colossal mistake. What was he thinking bringing a wild wolf cub into town?

He glanced down at Rey. He could kid himself as much as he wanted, but he’d done this for himself as well as for her. He didn’t want to be separated from his girl.

Tonight would prove to be interesting.


	6. Tear My Way Inside

“OMG, she’s adorable!”

_Ugh._

Ben bit back a grin as Rey all but rolled hazel puppy eyes up at him. _Behave, sweetheart. You’re the one who wanted to come along._

_You didn’t say you worked with such an odd species._

_Rose is good people._

_Is that her name?_ Rey bared her fangs. _Is she special to you, Alpha?_

_She is a friend._

_What is a friend? Is she your mate?_

_No!_

Rey’s fluffy tail wagged cautiously.

“Ben, you’re not even listening to me,” Rose complained.

He turned his gaze away from Rey. His conversations with the pup were rapidly becoming more complex as her grasp of human language grew beyond the instinctive sense memory of a pack mind. What did that mean?

Rey hadn’t transformed in the forest. Perhaps she wasn’t a shapeshifter, but could an especially intuitive wolf be this savvy? Was that even possible? Ben had no idea. He might need to have another conversation with his father.

“Ben Solo!”

“Sorry, what?” Ben looked at Rose’s sweet face, abashed.

They were at his place of work, a bar called The Red Sword. The name of the establishment was spelled out in red fluorescent tubing across the low roof which was the fanciest thing about it. The walls and floors were rough hewn timber, the tables and chairs liable to topple over at any moment, the bar itself a thick slab of pine that had earned its patina from all the drinks spilled across it over the years. 

Rose Tico stood staring at him with arms crossed over a white tank top that hugged plump breasts and threadbare denim cut-offs revealing slim thighs and shapely legs. Those legs sported a pair of lace-up brown suede boots that ended just above her knees. Rose had once told him the outfit alone doubled the amount of tips she received in a single night.

Rose was Ben’s oldest friend, though coming from a man who eschewed emotional connection for as long as he had, that wasn’t saying much. She’d arrived in his life almost two years ago, looking thin and bruised. He’d pushed a ten dollar note her way with the suggestion she go buy herself a meal at the local diner and she had begged the clear-eyed bartender for work. 

Ben had done one better. The tiny room above The Red Sword had stood empty for as long as he could remember and he offered it to Rose. She’d been sceptical about his intentions at first, but as time went on and the big man kept his distance, she realised she’d found sanctuary.

Their relationship remained platonic except for one awkward evening when a dozen guys on a road trip forced them to stay open significantly longer than usual. They were punch drunk with exhaustion by the time they closed. Everything they did from Rose sweeping the floor to Ben locking the till made them giggle hysterically. And then Rose pushed her small, curvaceous body up against his tall, broad form and tried to kiss him.

Her aim was so bad she’d swabbed his chin with her lips instead of his mouth. For a split second Ben had reacted as a red-blooded man instead of a walking cautionary tale, dipping his head and aiming plush lips at her bee-stung pout, but in the end he’d pulled back before they could connect. 

Rose knew the way he operated. The women he hooked up with were tourists and travellers on their way out of Takodana while Rose was a colleague who’d become a friend. Ben didn’t have the heart to ruin their relationship with casual sex, yet the disappointment on her face haunted him for weeks afterwards. Because he knew he was living a half life, distancing himself from people, eschewing any intimate form of relationship. Fortunately, his friendship with Rose remained intact, though she never offered herself to him again.

Truth be told, she was guarded anyway. More than one guy had shown interest in the petite brunette with the great curves, but Rose would flirt only enough to ensure her tips were generous. Ben suspected some kind of trauma in her past made her wary of getting too close to anyone, which was why she’d picked him. He was safe, his behaviour guaranteed to keep her at arm’s length. 

And then a few months ago Finn Jones dropped into their lives. For someone so determined to remain alone, Ben kept picking up strays. 

Like Rose, Finn was another hungry-eyed soul who’d come through Takodana looking for a night’s respite and then decided to hang around. He now acted as part-time bartender whenever Ben wanted a night off, helping Rose with server duties on particularly busy nights. He was also earning himself a name as the town handyman.

Ben liked the dark, leanly muscled young man. He had a great sense of humour and a willingness to be helpful. Ben was also grateful Rose had found someone to crush on other than him. Rose and Finn developed an easy friendship in the six months he’d been in town, though things hadn’t progressed past that stage. Ben wondered if they ever would. Like everyone else who called Takodana home, Finn seemed to have a past that prevented him from moving forward. 

“I’ve never seen you like this,” Rose said, sounding both intrigued and amused.

“Like what?” Ben asked.

“Devoted to someone else.”

Ben met Rose’s dark gaze and grimaced. She was right. He’d been unencumbered for so long that looking after Rey had him completely turned around.

Rose laughed. “Don’t get me wrong, it’s kinda cute.”

“I have to be careful with the pup,” Ben said with a shrug. “She is a wild animal.”

“How long before she’s ready to return to the forest?” Rose asked, crouching down to almost eye level with Rey. 

“I’m not sure,” Ben admitted. “I think she’s a couple of months old already. In the wild, she’d be hunting at nine months or thereabout.”

Rose glanced at him in surprise. “Look at you, becoming David Attenborough. You sure know a lot about wolves.”

“My mom was into this stuff,” Ben said, watching Rey. “It’s why we moved here.”

The front door to the bar opened and three pairs of eyes turned to the newcomer.

“Hey, Ben,” Finn greeted him cheerfully. “I wasn’t sure if you’d be working tonight so I thought I’d stop by and…” Finn’s words trailed off. “Wait- is that a wolf dog?”

“Nope,” Rose replied gleefully. “Pure wolf.”

To Ben’s surprise, Finn’s face stiffened. He thought he saw a flash of something… anger? distress?... in the younger man’s gaze.

Rose kept talking, unaware of anything amiss. “Ben found the pup in the woods, poor little thing. Her mother was dead.”

“And what about the rest?” Finn asked sharply. “I mean, don’t wolves travel in packs?”

Ben frowned. “She’d been alone for a while, Finn. The pup was hungry and cold. I was surprised to find her and her mama at all, to be honest. I haven’t seen wolves in Takodana forest before this.”

Finn opened his mouth to say something else but seemed to change his mind, snapping his jaw shut. Ben glanced at Rey who stood close by his right leg, her hazel gaze on Finn.

“What d’you mean you didn’t know if Ben would be here tonight?” Rose said all of a sudden. “I told you he was coming.”

Finn shrugged. “Just checking in.” His attention was still on the wolf cub. “Can I pet her?”

Ben’s answer was swift. “No.” Rose stared at him and Finn’s dark gaze went curiously flat. “She’s feral,” he offered as an explanation.

“Then why bring her with you?” Finn demanded.

Ben sighed, reaching down to run his fingers through Rey’s fur. “She started crying and I couldn’t leave her behind.”

Finn’s expression softened at this explanation.

“Daddy Ben. Who’d have thunk it?” Rose chuckled. 

“Do me a favour, guys,” Ben said, stepping behind the bar and allowing Rey through. “Don’t point her out to the customers. I’d rather the pup remain unnoticed.”

Rose and Finn exchanged grins with each other before agreeing. Ben knew he was behaving in a manner unknown to them, but he couldn’t help himself. Rey was his priority. 

Behind the bar enclosure, the wolf cub could remain at his feet out of harm’s way while he did his job. He hoped the noise and lights wouldn’t be too much for her, though she was already behaving in ways very different to that of a typical wild animal.

Their clientele began rolling in as soon as it struck six. Dinner had been eaten and the hunters and booze hounds could now soak in beers. Ben greeted the same roster of customers he saw every weeknight. Weekends became a little busier as out of towners arrived for hunting and camping getaways or used their town as a pit stop.

It was why Takodana worked so perfectly for a man like Ben. There were no family dynasties in this place. Almost everyone was a drifter, floating in on a tide of ill wind, catching their breath and leaving again. The sheriff that looked after the area came from the next county over and Ben didn’t know a single person outside his own father who recognised him from a few decades ago. Which was a good thing when you were a hundred-year-old male who still looked in his late twenties. 

Rose had flipped the script, sticking around much longer than Ben anticipated. He suspected he’d provided her unexpected care and she’d grown roots, settling into Takodana’s sleepy rhythm. Nevertheless, he gave it another couple of years before the pretty brunette got itchy feet and moved on to Hosnia or Coruscant, a big city with greater opportunity for work and romance. 

Wolves or people, it didn’t matter- everyone was looking for family.

Ben wasn’t so sure about Finn’s motivations. He had a feeling the outwardly cheerful dude was still battling demons the rest of them couldn’t fathom. They could form a club, the three of them, with their lonely hearts and broken lives.

“You got anything beside that piss you guys call beer?” The voice that spoke was nasal, lacking the slow drawl of a local. 

Ben glanced at Rey for the hundredth time, noting she was beginning to look sleepy, and turned to the customer. He nearly gave himself away as he looked a tall redheaded hunter dead in the eye, the very man who’d peppered his side with shotgun spray.

“What’re you after?” Ben asked, restraining a growl of anger.

Armie smirked. “A bottle of your finest tequila, a bowlful of lime wedges and a saltshaker. Four shot glasses.”

Ben raised an eyebrow but said nothing. He took the man’s money even though he had a bad feeling about his presence. 

Ben started slicing a couple of limes while surreptitiously watching the redhead saunter back to his table. Armie’s friend Dolph was already there, gazing starry eyed at a scantily clad Gwen Phasma, her spectacular legs on display in a micro miniskirt. Bazine Netal sat sulkily beside her best friend, dressed just as skimpily in a frock that was nothing more than a long tank top.

Rose came by to pick up the tray laden with tequila and assorted accompaniments. “Seriously?” she muttered, looking at it. “What a blowhard.”

“You know him?” Ben asked under his breath.

“You would too if you’d been here the last couple of nights,” she replied. “Give me a sec.” 

Rose delivered Armie’s order, deftly avoiding the leering redhead’s wandering hand while still managing to offer him a smile. Ben bit back a smirk as he watched her work. Rose checked on a couple of other tables before walking back to the bar. 

“Two more beers for Mac and Brian,” she told him.

Ben nodded, popping the caps on bottles and sliding them over to Rose. “So those guys have been coming by?”

“Every night.” Rose served the beers and returned once more. “They’re new, as you can tell. The redhead, Armitage Hux, owns property in Takodana.”

_“What?”_

Rey whimpered in response to Ben’s tone, trotting over to curl up on top of his booted foot. He needed to remember she was there before he took another step. 

Something else occurred to him. Rey. He couldn’t let Armie see Rey, damnit. If the other man recognised her as the wolf pup he’d left behind in the forest two nights ago, he might start asking uncomfortable questions. 

“Yeah, he’s the only relative of a Brendan Smith who used to live in these parts.”

“I know that name,” Ben said, furrowing his brow. “He used to run the old general store almost fifty years ago.”

Rose shook her head. “How do you even remember something like that?” she asked. Fortunately, she didn’t wait for a reply. “Since Brendan never got married and didn’t leave a will, it took the old man’s lawyers a few years to locate his nearest kin. Our tequila lover over there is the beneficiary of a house on the outskirts of town.”

“Good for him,” Ben said insincerely. “Is he moving in permanently?”

“Good grief, no,” Rose replied. “The pasty faced jerk can’t stop looking down his spindly nose at all of us. Apparently Brendan’s house is worth so little he’s not going to sell it. Armitage has decided it makes for a passable weekend getaway for him and his pals. Naturally, they’re all hunters.” Rose rolled her eyes.

Ben forced a chuckle though he wasn’t feeling particularly amused. “Great.”

Rose was called away to another table and Ben looked down at his little wolf cub. She yawned appealingly and he gently rolled her off his shoe, tucking her under the bar and out of sight. He couldn’t bring Rey to work with him again until he was certain Hux and his friend had left town. 

As the night rolled on and the drinks kept being poured, Armie’s table grew raucous. Ben kept one eye on them though he wasn’t worried for the women. Gwen might be the best looking female in town but she could throw down with any man in the bar, and Bazine was notorious for her short temper while under the influence. The two young women had graduated high school a few years ago and currently worked at the local diner for Baz’s mother. Ben could already see the desire to fly the coop in their restless natures; Takodana wouldn’t hold them for much longer. 

Armie’s face was flushed as red as his hair and he’d only grown louder with every drink he consumed. Dolph was looking less happy since Gwen found her way onto Armie’s lap. Baz was still looking disgusted about being there despite having chugged her fair share of free drinks.

“Did you manage to bag a buck on your hunting trip?” Gwen asked as she finished Armie’s bottle of beer.

“We nearly took down a bear,” the redhead drunkenly declared, lurching on his seat for no apparent reason.

“Woah,” Gwen muttered, hopping off Armie’s lap and back onto her empty seat.

“Hey, where ya goin’?” he slurred.

“I only get with real men, Armitage,” Gwen said with meaningful inflection on his unusual name.

“What does that mean?” Armie yelled belligerently. “I’ve got proof! Proof of a dead wolf in Tako-wako-dana forest.”

“Sure you do,” Bazine said, sounding bored. “Shot and killed a wolf, did ya? Was there a lion and a giraffe as well?”

“No, it was already dead,” Dolph mumbled, drawing a scowl from Armie who clearly wanted to tell a different story.

“There are no wolves in these parts,” Gwen snapped, half standing. “I’ve had enough of your tall tales…”

“Here!” Armie said, still yelling. Shaking hands pulled out a smartphone and he unlocked it using facial recognition software. He began thumbing through his photographs, finally stopping at the right one. “Here you go—hey!”

Ben had never moved so fast in his entire life. He slipped out from behind the bar and walked over to Armie’s table. A swift and subtle kick to the redhead’s chair leg unsettled him enough that the phone went flying from his hand. Ben caught it mid-air, beckoning Rose over at the same time.

“I think you’ve had enough, guys,” he declared, putting his smooth baritone to good use. 

Gwen threw herself at him, arms twirling around his neck. “Are we being bad, Ben? What can I do to apologise?” she cooed.

It wasn’t the first time Gwen had propositioned him but Ben had no interest starting anything with the blonde. Still, her statuesque figure provided ideal cover as he glanced down at Armie’s cell, highlighting the dozen photos he wanted and sending them to his own phone via Bluetooth. Once that was done, he deleted the shots. 

Ben slipped the phone back onto the table as he settled Gwen in her chair. He looked up and met Finn’s dark gaze, his expression hard to read. Had Finn seen what he’d done? Ben couldn’t tell.

“Get your stinkin’ white trash hands off my girl!” Armie snarled, launching himself at Ben.

The older man felt a little bad considering he’d somewhat provoked Armie’s reaction. He grabbed the redhead by his arms, twisting them behind his back and slamming Armie against a wooden post. Ben easily had ten times his strength even in human form; the trick was not breaking any bones while trying to subdue him.

“Ben, watch out!” 

He turned his head in time to see Finn tackle Dolph to the ground. The smaller man held an empty beer bottle in his hand and it smashed against the floor.

“Thanks, dude,” Ben grinned as Finn wrestled Dolph to a standing position. He turned back to Armie who was grimacing as he tried to break Ben’s grip. “When do you leave town, hotshot?”

“To-tomorrow,” Armie gasped.

“Good,” Ben growled. “You’ve certainly worn out your welcome here.”

With Finn’s help and to the sound of applause from the rest of their patrons, Ben sent Armie and Dolph on their way. Gwen and Bazine staggered out the door after them, the blonde attempting to give Ben a parting kiss.

“What a slutbag,” Rose muttered, already sweeping up shattered glass. 

“Show’s over, folks,” Ben declared, returning to the bar. “Next round’s on the house,” he added to cheers from their remaining customers.

“I wonder what the owner of the bar would have to say about you giving away free drinks like that,” Finn said, draining his beer straight from the bottle. “What’s his name again?”

“Kylo Ren,” Ben answered as he grabbed more bottles for Rose to hand out. “And he’s never really questioned the way I handle things. This place is more of a tax break than a money making machine to him.”

Finn nodded in a knowing manner. “You got it pretty good, Solo. It’s almost as if you’re your own boss.”

Ben glanced at the other man but he was already heading back into the crowd, helping Rose disperse drinks. Finn was in a funny mood tonight.

Ben checked on Rey once more and found her sleeping sweetly. He’d taken a risk leaving her behind the bar to steal Armie’s pictures but luck had been on his side. Fortunately, the wolf pup hadn’t woken up and brought the bar down with her howls.

Ben waited for a lull in service before checking his phone. Armie had been speaking the truth for once. He’d taken a dozen digital pictures of Rey’s mother’s carcass. A couple of the photos even had Rey in them and Ben was glad he’d erased them from the redhead’s phone.

He zoomed in on the wounds and felt his blood run cold. The night he’d come across Rey, Ben had known there was something amiss about her mother’s dead body but he hadn’t wanted to look too closely, knowing it would trigger his own ugly memories of the past. But now, gazing at crystal clear digital images of the bloody marks, he realised what was wrong.

The kill marks on Rey’s mother’s body matched Leia’s exactly.


	7. Claw Out Your Skin

Ben wasn’t sure how he was able to last the remaining hours of his shift, but he got through them somehow. 

It surprised him that Finn was still hanging around as he and Rose closed the bar, but it did mean end of night clean up went more quickly. Maybe there was something going on between Finn and Rose after all.

Ben was grateful to be back in the silence of his truck, Rey asleep on the passenger seat beside him. His head ached with a multitude of questions and he arrived at his destination mere minutes later.

Every time he saw the house it looked smaller. The three bedroom cabin stood on the furthest outskirts of town, as close to the forest as Han and Leia could get it without calling attention to themselves. Leia’s dream was to eventually build in the heart of Takodana forest, which Ben had now done. 

Ben was born in that cabin, had been raised and schooled within its walls, and yet every happy memory was sullied by the consequences of Leia’s passing away. He picked up Rey in one arm, knowing the pup would go crazy if she woke to find herself alone. Her presence calmed him somewhat though the quicksilver temper he’d battled all his life still ran close to the surface.

It was after three in the morning, but he wasn’t surprised when Han opened the front door after his first knock.

“Ben, what…?”

He strode inside, not wanting to have a conversation where they might be overheard. “You said mom was short sighted, that there were outside forces she should have worried about. What did you mean by that?”

“Hello to you too,” Han grumbled. “Did you just close the bar?”

“Dad, answer the question.”

Han stared at him, standing straight backed with a curious wolf pup awakening in his arms. “Sit down, kid.”

“Don’t waste my time…”

“Ben, just sit for a second!” There was a strained silence and Han ran his palm over his face. “Damnit, son, I know I’m a screwed-up mess of a father, but you never made things easy for me.” Han sank onto a leather couch, its stuffing spilling out of various cracks. “You always ran hot, always so emotional, so sensitive to everything that was said and done. Leia knew how to handle you. She was the only one who could talk sense into you.” 

Ben stopped himself from saying the first unkind thing that crossed his mind, instead collapsing on the armchair across from Han. The cracked leather snagged at his jacket. “You have the money to get new furniture, y’know.”

“Leia chose this.”

“I know, dad.”

Father and son looked at each other, feeling the chasm of time and pain that had grown between them.

“I didn’t want to tell you. I hoped I’d never have to.”

Ben blinked, surprised by how quickly Han had come to the point. Rey squirmed in his arms and he placed her on the worn carpet. She began sniffing and exploring immediately, tail wagging.

“Your mother was a princess, the daughter of an Alpha.” Han’s gaze grew distant as he reached back into memories almost a century old. “Leia’s father Anakin was visiting another pack leader when we met. I was working in the town close by Exegol woods when I saw this slip of a girl with big dark eyes in a delicate face, long dark hair in a thick braided rope. God, I fell hard.” Han paused to clear his throat. “She was half my height but had a strength about her. How was I supposed to know that was literally true? That the ruby red pendant she wore wasn’t a spoiled brat’s trinket but a family crest?”

Han fell silent and Rey bumbled over to him, scratching at his calf. He smiled down at the pup and ruffled her ears. She bounded back to Ben, looking pleased with herself. Despite the heaviness in the air, Ben grinned.

“I know this already, dad,” he said gently.

Han nodded in acknowledgement. “We fell in love and eloped. Leia’s biggest fear was reprisal from her father. For a couple of years we lived on the run, avoiding packs of werewolves sent to find us. As time went on, Anakin realised Leia was serious about her choice to marry me and did what any good father would have done- he let his daughter go. Leia couldn’t believe it when he released her trust fund, allowing us to build a home and settle down in a part of the world that could cater to her werewolf side. But Anakin Skywalker wasn’t the only one we needed to worry about.”

Rey was done rolling around on the ground and sniffing corners. She planted her forepaws on Ben’s knee and he scooped her up, tumbling the pup into his lap. She started gnawing at his thumb and he let her.

“Rey’s going to need a lot of attention,” Han said in sudden amusement. 

Ben realised the pup was doing for his father what she’d done for him, pulling his focus away from past tragedies. “She’s all consuming,” Ben admitted, flipping the wolf cub and rubbing her belly. “Who else was there to worry about, dad?”

Han took a moment to collect his thoughts. “The woods of Exegol are ruled by a clan of werewolves with numbers only matched by Anakin’s pack. Their leader was an old Alpha by the name of Palpatine. War was brewing between the families, mainly due to Palpatine’s desire to extend his influence, and Anakin and Leia had come to Exegol to broker peace. The thing was Leia was Anakin’s bartering chip.”

“What does that mean?” Ben frowned as Rey wriggled upright once more.

“Anakin intended to seal the deal through marriage, offering his daughter to a son of Palpatine.”

“And instead she ran away with a human,” Ben said, almost to himself.

Han nodded. “Imagine the offense that would have caused. Leia hadn’t even met her suitor when I stumbled across her in town.”

“Love at first sight, huh?” Ben said with unexpected wistfulness. “Is there really such a thing?”

Han jerked his chin at Rey. “You tell me, kid.”

“Rey?” Ben flushed. “I’m not—it’s not the same thing.”

“Love is love,” Han told him. “Some souls latch onto you for life.”

Ben stroked the smooth spot between Rey’s ears. “Did Palpatine kill mom?”

Han hesitated before replying. “I think so, yes.”

Ben clenched his fists, red hot anger filling his chest. Rey whimpered, sitting up and rubbing her head against his collar. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“What could I say, Ben? That a shadowy werewolf pack hunted down your mother and took her life for breaking a betrothal that was decades old? You were overcome with grief over Leia’s passing away, as well as battling guilt surrounding the death of that hunter. By the way, I know you sent his family hundreds of thousands of dollars under the guise of an insurance payout. The manager who looks after Leia’s assets told me about it. I wasn’t about to have you run off half-cocked on some kind of revenge quest that was guaranteed to get you killed.”

Ben told himself to shake off his anger and nail down the facts. “How do you know mom was killed by a werewolf? I mean, how can you be sure?”

“The wounds on her body were inhuman,” Han explained, “neither manmade nor anything I’d seen an animal inflict. Not even grizzlies have claws like that. Besides, nothing else could have taken out Leia. Anakin trained her well. Your mother was a warrior.”

Ben moved Rey off his lap, bringing up the photos he’d stolen from Armie’s phone. He stood and handed his device to Han. “See anything familiar?”

In the dim light of the living room, his father’s face turned grey. “Where the hell did you get these?”

“That’s the body of Rey’s mother.”

“Oh, no,” Han gasped.

Ben saw his father’s hands were shaking. “Dad, you okay?”

Han stood up as well, walking to the kitchen and leaving Ben to follow in his wake. Rey gave a soft whine, trailing behind them. Ben watched his dad pull out a bag of coffee beans and feed them into a shiny chrome machine that instantly began grinding and percolating.

“My new vice,” Han said with a weak smile, “though sometimes I wish whiskey was still an option.”

“How long…?”

“Have I been dry? Coming up to eight years now.”

Ben shook his head in disbelief. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Would you have listened?” Han pulled out two lightly chipped mugs. Ben said nothing and his father grimaced. “Not that I’d blame you for kicking me out on my ass if I tried to apologise. I let you down when you needed me the most, kid.”

Ben shrugged, deciding to meet his father halfway. “You were right about me; I was a hard ass. It’s not like you were dealing with a cuddly bunny.” He picked up Rey who started licking his neck.

The coffee machine began to steam, filling the air with a lush aroma. Rey snuffled in interest as well. 

“Ben, I need to talk to you about that.”

“Hmm?” he responded, running his fingers down Rey’s back as she shivered in pleasure.

“When I found you a couple of nights ago in your werewolf form… kid, you were massive.”

“Right.”

“No, I mean it. I’ve seen other werewolves when your mother and I were running from Anakin. You’re easily double the size of his foot soldiers. I think…” Han hesitated. “Ben, I think you’re an Alpha.”

He watched his father pour two cups of black coffee, placing milk and sugar on the worn counter. “What am I supposed to do about it?” Ben asked irritably, wrapping a hand around a hot mug. He didn’t mention the fact Rey already called him Alpha. 

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Han admitted, “but maybe that’s why there are other werewolves in the area. Some kind of territorial thing. Assuming, of course, that Rey’s mama was killed by a werewolf.”

“There are a million reasons why werewolves might be invading Takodana forest,” Ben protested. “I mean, we’ve managed to protect a thousand acres from the worst of hunters and poachers, plus it’s uninhabited by other shapeshifters. A pack might want it for their new home.”

“Why kill a mother wolf, Ben? I don’t like it. That’s hostile action right there.” Han took a gulp of his coffee, flinching at the heat.

“Yeah,” Ben agreed. “I have a bad feeling too, and it involves Rey.”

The two men looked at the wolf cub who was worrying a rip in the linoleum floor. She seemed to sense their gaze and paused to look back at them, head cocked.

_Alpha?_

__

__

_Everything’s fine, sweetheart._

She wagged her tail but trotted back to his side. 

“Wolf cubs are born in litters of four or six, but Rey was alone. I wonder if her siblings were taken by whoever it was killed the mother wolf. They might have missed Rey.”

Han stared at him. “Why would shapeshifters do that? I know there’s kinship between wolves and werewolves but it’s like comparing men with apes.”

Ben sipped his coffee, his ideas becoming clearer as he voiced them to his father. “We know werewolves and human are able to mate, creating half-breeds.”

“Hence your existence,” Han agreed.

“What if some werewolves are mating with actual wolves?”

Han looked shocked, setting down his mug with a thump. “That’s crazy, kid.”

“Why? You and mom always said she was rare amongst her kind, a pureblood female shapeshifter. If her people were struggling to maintain breeding pairs a hundred years ago, they might nearly be extinct by now.”

“But werewolves mate for life. It’s in their nature.”

“I know, I know. I’m just trying to wrap my head around all this.” Ben took a cautious sip of the coffee. As he suspected, it was strong enough to dissolve paint.

Han sat down on a stool with a disgruntled expression. “Look, I can’t say that the photos you showed me aren’t persuasive, but apart from wound marks is there anything else telling you there are shapeshifters in the neighbourhood?”

“The body went missing.”

“What?”

“The dead wolf was gone when I returned the next day. And I mean truly gone. This wasn’t scavengers picking the bones clean, or a bigger animal dragging it away and leaving a trail. Someone or something had removed the carcass.”

Han drained his coffee and poured himself another mug, making Ben wince in sympathy for the old man’s stomach lining. “What’re you gonna do about it?” his father asked reluctantly.

Ben said nothing for a moment. Despite his feeling of unease, it was hard to shake decades of lethargy and avoidance. “This isn’t my fight,” he replied. “I mean, I don’t even know what’s going on. Everything we’ve discussed is supposition.”

Han’s dissatisfaction with his son’s answer was written all over his face. Ben understood because he felt the same way. And yet… what could he do?

Rey rolled over his foot and he bent down to pick her up. “Oof, I swear she’s getting heavier by the minute.”

His father gave a reluctant smile. “How’s the business running? Have any of those yokels worked out that you’re Kylo Ren?”

Ben snorted. “I think the idea of a rich old hermit who lets me run his bar into the ground for a tax break appeals to the town’s outlaw spirit.”

He had established The Red Sword a couple of decades ago as a seemingly legitimate way to earn an income, the name of the establishment inspired by his mother’s favourite piece of jewellery. The name Kylo Ren came from Ben’s childhood, an alter ego he developed to cope with the fact he had a dark side unlike other little boys. 

“I should probably head home,” Ben sighed, looking out a window and seeing pink dawn creeping along. “Thanks for the turpentine,” he added, shaking his mug.

“It’s a man’s drink,” Han gibed. 

“It’s poison, dad,” Ben said, holding Rey close as he searched for his keys. He was out the door, a wolf cub’s head nuzzled against one shoulder, when Han’s voice called out to him. Ben paused, turning around.

“Be careful, kid,” Han said hesitantly. “Keep your eyes open.”

“Sure, dad.” 

In Ben’s arms, Rey whimpered as if in agreement.


	8. Break The Night

Ben lay in his own bed for the first time since Rey had entered his life. Beside him, nestled against his chest, was his wolf pup.

“You really should be in the nesting box,” Ben sighed.

One eye opened and she gave him a scornful look.

He smirked. “Brat.”

_I must remain by my Alpha’s side._

Ben hesitated. This Alpha business was rapidly getting out of hand, but he had more important things to discuss. “Rey, I have to ask you something that might be difficult.”

_Anything for you, Alpha._

Right. “How much do you remember of your life before I found you?”

Both eyes opened and she considered his question. _In the beginning was only sensation. Warmth, cold, hunger, nourishment._ She paused. _There were more of me._

Ben felt his pulse quicken. “More of you? Do you mean more like you?”

_Yes, more like me. My blood. Brothers. Three of them._

“What happened to them, Rey?”

Ben felt a quiver run through her small puppy body and he stroked her reassuringly. _I’m here, little one._

_I know, Alpha. Thank you, Alpha._

He pressed his nose into the fur on her neck and she rolled over, exposing her soft underbelly. Ben breathed Rey in, sensing her delight as he delighted in her. She was all about him, his little one. When she’d relaxed once more, he tipped her back onto his bare chest and waited.

_I’m sorry, Alpha. I don’t know where my brothers have gone. Mother took me one night. It was cold and damp and she ran far, holding me by my scruff._

Ben’s unease returned. 

_Was mother wrong to do so?_

He ran his fingers behind her ears, soothing his pup. _No, baby. I think she was protecting you._

Rey chuffed softly, lowering her head to his heartbeat. _Now Alpha protects me._

Ben’s response came without hesitation. _Yes._

As Rey’s breathing deepened, Ben lay staring up at his ceiling. There were things afoot he could not understand. It made him uneasy, and yet it didn’t change his mind about what to do next, which was nothing. Why should he go looking for trouble? Takodana was home and he was at peace here. His response might be shortsighted, but there were no other signs of werewolf or wolf activity.

Rey squirmed against his chest and his emotions swelled. As sure as the sun rose in the east, he was bonded to the wolf cub. If Han’s words were meant to be a warning, it had come too late. Ben already thought of her needs above his own. He considered the future. It was his duty to teach Rey independence before returning her to the wild, and he knew the process would most certainly break his heart.

The next several weeks would be the biggest test of Ben’s adult life, as man or werewolf.

Time flew by as it was wont to do. Ben now shared both waking and sleeping moments with a female wolf, her presence complicating his lifestyle.

Rey was unique in her desire to be close to him. She continued to follow him into work, refusing to be left behind or separated from Ben for more than a few minutes. He in turn openly argued with her, often forgetting they had an audience, amusing Rose and drawing strange looks from Finn.

One night the wolf pup was particularly rambunctious, jumping at him if it looked like he was about to leave her behind the bar.

“Hey, hey, hey,” he’d said, scooping her into his arms. His voice was a dark as the night sky, a not-quite growl. “I’m here, baby girl. I’m not going anywhere.”

She yipped, hazel eyes fixing him with a mean glare as if to say, _‘yeah right’_. Ben couldn’t help himself—he laughed.

“Uncanny,” Rose muttered.

Ben wondered if he’d given himself away, but he needn’t have worried. Bless their cotton socks, humans were so willing to explain away the supernatural using banal facts. Rose droned on and on about imprinting and how Ben must have stumbled across his wolf pup at just the right time for it to have occurred.

On the other hand, Finn remained fairly reticent about Rey’s presence. Ben wasn’t too concerned about the younger man’s attitude. Rey was a wild animal, after all. It seemed natural he’d have concerns.

Ben settled into a new rhythm, feeding Rey milk and steak in the day, running with her late at night after work in his werewolf form. He taught her how to hunt, to be self-sufficient. Soon she was killing rabbit and squirrel, enjoying fresh meat. A few more weeks went by and he weaned her off formula.

Rey’s speed and agility improved exponentially as she grew bigger and stronger. She lost her puppy fat, her body sleek and lively, quadrupling in size from the time he’d found her. It startled Ben the day he realised his wolf pup was now full grown, her soft tan fur revealing a reddish iridescence in the sun.

Rey still slept on his bed, still insisted on nuzzling against him for warmth and comfort. More than once Ben had tried to relegate her to the floor, but she only looked at him with patient incredulity. He might have been Alpha, but she was as strong minded as any woman he’d ever known. As time went on, Ben began to worry he’d have to force the issue of separation. 

What Ben overlooked was Rey’s increasingly unnatural behavioural choices; her clarity of speech as she inhabited his mind, the way she watched and assessed the world around her. He was determined to do the right thing for the she-wolf in his care and that meant returning her to a natural environment. As far as he was concerned, there was no other option. Things eventually came to a head. 

“I think we need to take a trip.”

It was midnight and they were in the woods hunting. Ben had closed the bar early. He was still in human form, allowing Rey to lope ahead as he walked briskly behind her. 

She’d grown steadily more independent despite their lingering connection. Rey would sometimes run on, vanishing into the darkness, eventually turning around and looping back to him. There were nights when he wished she would simply disappear into the forest and not return. It would be easier than bidding her a protracted goodbye.

_What is a trip?_

__

We travel a great distance.

__

_Why, Alpha?_

“This is not your home,” Ben told her, his throat aching with suppressed emotion. His mouth formed a tight smile. “I’ve been doing my research and there are woodlands in Hoth that’s home to many wolves.”

She sat down and cocked her head to one side. _What is wrong with you?_

“I’m fine.”

_No, you are not, my Alpha._

“I’m not your alpha, little one. We’ve had this discussion.”

Rey shook her plumed tail. _Our discussion was not to my satisfaction._

“Rey…” he groaned.

 _Yes, that is the name you gave me, Alpha_.

“Enough!” he yelled, and her ears flattened. She took a step back. “Rey, you’re a wolf, and I… I am something else. You have no business being with me.”

Bright hazel eyes bored into his soul. _Always this discussion! Always you deny me. Why, Alpha? You have cared for me, protected me… loved me._

“Don’t make me say things I don’t want to,” he husked, hands clenched by his sides.

_You are my Alpha. I will never leave you._

“I’m not your anything, Rey! I’m a guy who stumbled across you by accident. I took pity on you and nothing more. You’re an animal, beneath me, less than what I am. We are not a pack.”

The tan wolf lifted her head and howled; the sound as raw as an open wound.

Ben turned and walked away, his legs like bags of cement. The last time he’d cried was over his mother’s slain body. He felt the sting of tears once more, his grief tangible, restricting his breathing.

He’d done the right thing. Rey had to understand she couldn’t stay with him. He needed to be cruel to be kind. She was better off roaming a forest than being limited by his human lifestyle, constrained within his cabin or behind a bar.

Just as he’d paused to take a deep breath, Rey’s mournful howl turned into strange yipping. There came an inhuman scream and Ben’s heart stopped beating. He turned and ran, returning to the spot where he’d left the she-wolf. Rey was curled on the ground, sounds of pain coming from a torn throat.

“What the hell?” he gasped, falling to his knees beside her.

His mind yelled caution. Someone had done this to his Rey. Where was the hunter who’d hurt her? Was it an animal that had attacked? But his senses picked up nothing untoward.

Rey whimpered, writhing on the grass. Her skin split, revealing flesh that was smooth underneath drenched fur. Her bones cracked, teeth shortening. Shocked, Ben watched as her features shifted and limbs lengthened. Skinny arms wound their way around his neck and a face covered in blood and viscera looked up at him.

“Rey,” Ben whispered. He was shaking with emotion.

His she-wolf had transformed. She was shivering, lips trembling. Sticky hair reached past her shoulders and her body was thin but perfectly formed underneath a film of goo. Ben quickly checked her hands and feet and found them fully articulated. Human.

“A-alpha?” Her voice was thready, her throat untried.

Ben held her close. “What have you done, Rey?” She laid her head on his shoulder, breathless as if she’d run a marathon. “What have you done?”

Rey mewled into his chest.

 _Mine,_ every cell in his body howled.

“It’s okay, baby girl,” Ben reassured her, his voice dark and low. “Alpha’s here.” He picked her up in his arms and began the walk back home.

“Alpha?”

Ben looked into hazel eyes that shone with tears. His heart wrenched and he made a vow. “I’m sorry for what I said before, sweetheart. I’m never going to leave you.”

His head was ready to explode, his mind in a whirl. Was this really happening? Rey was light in his strong grasp, her head pressed against his chest. His wolf pup changed into a human female. How? And why now?

Ben had the ability to shapeshift from the time he was a babe. It was why Han and Leia had been so protective of him as a child. He couldn’t be trusted in human society until he was able to control his abilities. Rey was different- she’d been pure wolf as far as he could tell.

But now everything had changed. Ben didn’t know how to feel. He’d gone from being responsible for a she-wolf to cradling a human girl. Rey closed her eyes and curled against him as if shutting out the world. She was shivering still and he suspected she was cold without her natural pelt.

He arrived at his cabin and took her to the bathroom, placing her on a towel on the tiled floor. She whimpered in protest as he let her go.

“I’m right here, sweetheart,” he said, every nerve in his body attuned to her needs.

He filled the claw-footed tub with steaming water, testing temperature and adding a lavender scented bubble bath that he’d received as part of an ill-conceived Christmas gift from Rose. Ben eased Rey into the warm bath and her eyes fluttered open, bright but unfocused.

“Hey,” he said, giving her a strained smile.

He knew how disoriented he felt whenever he shapeshifted; he could only imagine what Rey was going through her first time.

She returned the expression uncertainly, unfamiliar with the workings of small pink lips. Rey slowly sat up in the tub and Ben felt his breath catch. She was perfect; narrow shoulders and slim hips, slender limbs and delicate features. Her face was innocent with big hazel eyes and long eyelashes, rosy cheeks and soft lips. Rey’s smooth skin was the golden tan of her fur, new and flawless, her slippery straight hair chestnut brown with a red tinge.

And she was most definitely female. Her breasts were small but ripe, pink nipples tight as she sat in the warm bath. The delicate mound at the junction of her thighs had a tiny triangular tuft of reddish hair, as if pointing the way to her feminine slit. Ben felt his body clench in desire and drew back, soapy sponge in one hand.

What was wrong with him? Rey wasn’t some tipsy tourist looking to get laid before she returned to life in the city. This was his precious girl pup whom he’d fed and sheltered and raised the last few weeks. She deserved better than his awkward lust over her naked female body.

He tried to hand Rey the sponge but she looked confused by it. Hesitantly, Ben ran it over her face and body, removing the detritus of her shapeshifting. He rubbed a minty shampoo into her hair which made her wrinkle her nose.

He laughed. “Humans like smelly stuff,” he told her.

She lifted her hands, watching water run through brand new fingers. She flexed ten digits before gazing at him with limpid eyes.

“It’s strange,” he said comfortingly.

She nodded.

Ben stood and pulled Rey out of the bathtub, making her squeak. She was smaller than him, the top of her head only reaching the middle of his chest. He towelled her down as she wriggled and protested, making him laugh once more.

“Let’s find you something to wear,” Ben said once she was dry. Rey looked askance and he plucked at his shirt. “Clothes.”

She frowned and shook her head.

“Humans wear clothes, baby girl.”

The frown turned into a pout. Good to know _that_ expression was instinctual.

He took her hand and led her to his room, trying not to react to her naked body. She was familiar with their shared space and headed straight for his bed, rolling around on blue sheets like the puppy she once was.

Ben opened a wardrobe drawer and closed it again. He turned to his clothes hamper instead, finding a t-shirt he’d worn the day before. He tossed it to Rey, still cavorting naked on his bed. She was gorgeous, firm limbs and a strong, slim body. Her damp hair fell in waves to her elbows, her skin sun kissed gold and as smooth as satin.

She sniffed his t-shirt, smelled him on the cotton and pulled the garment close. She curled up on her side, burrowing her nose in his scent.

“Put it on, sweetheart,” he said.

She clutched his t-shirt, stubbornly shaking her head. He sat on the bedside and pulled her to him. She came willingly, hands looping around his neck. He tugged the garment over her head, ruffling shiny hair, guiding her hands through the sleeves.

“There,” he murmured, a strange feeling of contentment filling his chest. His t-shirt was big enough that it fell past her skinny hips.

She crawled into his lap, pressing her face to his chest. “Alpha,” she sighed.

Ben felt emotional all over again. He’d gone from the certainty he had to let Rey go to this, a brand new... friend. Was that right? Who was she to him? She wasn’t a daughter or sister, not with the way his dick was flexing in his pants, and certainly more than a casual acquaintance.

Rey still moved like a wolf, wriggling atop him until skinny legs straddled his hips. She snuffled into his neck, clearly finding the position more comfortable. Ben held her close, big hands rubbing her back soothingly. She seemed to like that. Unexpectedly, she pressed her open mouth to his ear and began to lick. He jumped, pushing her off himself.

“No!” he yelled. What was perfectly normal in the animal kingdom felt wrong in human form.

She mewled, big eyes grown even bigger. She was hurt by his reaction and scrambled away from him.

“You’re human now,” he explained, voice stern. “We don’t lick.”

She bit her lips and asked forlornly, “Lick?”

Ben suppressed a groan. All this time he’d held and cuddled Rey’s wolf form, allowing her to lie on his lap and sleep close by his side. Now he needed to change the parameters of their behaviour while still reassuring her she was loved. The slender human she’d become was a complication he hadn’t expected.

Ben picked her up by the waist. Rey fought him, awkwardly kicking legs and flinging hands until she realised there was no way out of his arms. At last she quietened, looking confused, and he sighed.

“I didn’t mean to upset you, sweetheart,” he murmured into her hair.

She huffed, relaxing into his embrace. “No lick?” she questioned.

“What about a kiss?” he suggested, dropping one on top of her head.

“Kiss,” she tried out the word, stressing the end until it sounded like a hiss.

Ben grinned and pecked her cheek. “Kiss,” he repeated.

Rey was looking for assurance that they were still a pack, a family, and he needed to show it to her somehow. The newly formed girl touched her cheek and then his mouth. She pressed her lips to the side of his neck in imitation of what he’d done and pulled back with a frown, finding the connection wanting.

Ben couldn’t help himself—he laughed. Rey scowled at him. He was glad to see the transformation hadn’t affected her verve one bit.

He rolled over on the bed, taking her with him. She squealed loudly, both thrilled and nervous. Ben hovered over her on rumpled blankets and rained kisses down on her exquisite face, kissing her forehead and cheeks, the top of her ears and the soft little lobes, her chin and jaw. She began to giggle, scrunching up her eyes as he kissed those too. He watched her relax, tension easing out of her body, her sweet mouth smiling up at him.

Better, Ben thought to himself. If somehow his little wolf cub had shapeshifted for him, then it was his responsibility to look after her, to teach her what it was to be human.

Rey curled up against his chest sighing deeply and Ben resisted the urge to reciprocate.

Ready or not, he’d been delivered a bombshell he wasn’t sure he could handle. Rey had arrived, all svelte curves and slim limbs and shiny hair, and he was in for the biggest adventure of his life.


	9. Pour It Out

If raising a rambunctious wolf cub was a challenge, living with an equally feisty young woman was pure torture. Sweet torture, but torture nonetheless.

Ben asked Finn to step into his role at the bar, unwilling to leave Rey alone and certain she wasn’t ready for human society. For one thing, Rey hated clothes. Ben jumped online and ordered a whole bunch of things for her to wear but so far she’d only condescended to put on his shirts, preferring ones that still had his scent on them. 

The day he tried to explain bras and panties remained in his memory as the most awkward thing he’d ever done. He’d resorted to taking off his jeans so that she could see he too wore underwear, which was when she’d become fascinated by the bulge in his black trunks. The words ‘unmitigated disaster’ came to mind.

Rey was completely unselfconscious of her human body, bending and stretching experimentally, as lithe and graceful as a dancer. The number of times he discovered her sprawled on a couch or bed, his shirt ridden high enough on her body that he could see her ribcage, her pert little buttocks and plump sex on display, were too many to count. Ben’s fairly sedate libido had gone into overdrive with Rey’s creamy female form on display in his home. He was convinced she was turning him into a pervert.

Rey continued to expect constant physical contact with him. If he was on the couch, she made her way onto his lap. When he went to bed, she curled up inside his arms. He often awoke with a swatch of chestnut red hair in his mouth and one arm curled around a soft, springy body part he had no right touching.

And she still called him Alpha. Ben couldn’t deny anymore that was exactly his role in her life, except he wasn’t sure what it meant. Apart from making sure Rey was safe and fed and acclimatising to her human form, what more was he supposed to do?

It was the everyday things that tripped them up- for example, dealing with her silken mass of hair. Rey hated the braids Ben attempted but disliked slippery strands getting in her face even more. She eventually twisted her locks into three sloppy buns atop her head using a handful of elastic bands. 

Rey preferred her meat raw but she also discovered sugar, devouring sweet cereals by the boxful. Her speech was developing slowly but surely, though she seemed resentful of the need to use her tongue after so many months inhabiting his mind. Her first shower was traumatic and she now exclusively used the bathtub, learning to clean her body with soaps and sponges. 

A couple of weeks went by this way, Rey taking one step forward and two steps back when it came to human behaviour. It was both the most exhausting and rewarding time of Ben’s life. 

He knew Rose was worried by his disappearance. When they’d first met, he’d shown up for work at the bar every night, as faithful as the tides. He tried to reassure Rose over the phone while Rey snuffled into his neck that all was well, but he knew the young woman wasn’t buying it. She’d known him to be one thing for the last two years, and now he was behaving completely unlike himself.

Ben hadn’t even told Han about Rey’s shapeshift. Truthfully, he didn’t know what to say. As the days went by, she didn’t return to her wolf self and he wondered if shapeshifting was unnatural for her. Still, he couldn’t believe her human form was permanent either.

He should have known someone would come looking for him.

The doorbell rang one afternoon and Ben froze in the midst of putting away laundry. Rey felt the change in his demeanour and bared her teeth like a good little pack mate, emitting a growl. It was adorable coming from her delicate face.

“Hush,” he said, kissing her quickly on the forehead so she knew he wasn’t angry with her. “I need you to stay in the room and be quiet. Can you do that?”

She rolled her eyes and he bit back another grin. Rey would be a bona fide human being soon enough.

He closed his bedroom door to make sure she stayed put and went to the front door. To his surprise, Finn stood on the doorstep.

“What’s going on, Finn?” he asked. He didn’t realise the other man even knew where he lived.

“Are you kidding?” Finn asked, throwing his hands into the air. “We haven’t seen you in weeks, Solo. Rose is going crazy. She assures me this disappearing act isn’t like you.”

 _Damnit_.

“I needed time,” Ben said, unsure how to explain his behaviour.

Finn frowned. “Doing what, man? We live in the styx.”

Normally this would have been cause for Ben to make an equally snarky remark about Finn’s drifter status, but he was too caught up with the turn his life had taken. “I’ll call Rose and let her know I’m okay,” Ben said, already pushing his front door close.

Finn’s foot interrupted the swing. “Dude, just come in to work. Let Rose know you’re alive and not being held hostage.”

Ben stared at the other man in surprise. His suggestion actually sounded halfway helpful. “Yeah… I can’t.”

“What’s with you?” Finn asked irritably. “All I’ve ever heard is what a great guy you are, an amazing boss, a generous bartender. I thought you were more responsible than this…”

Ben’s scalp prickled as Finn’s voice trailed off, his eyes focusing on something behind Ben. He didn’t want to turn around, afraid of what he’d see. By the time he snuck a peek over his shoulder, the coast was clear.

“I swear I just saw…” Finn shook his head dazedly. “Do you have a visitor?”

“Yes!” Ben almost shouted, causing the other man to stare. “An old friend of my mother’s. I mean, my mom’s friend’s daughter. Looks like I’m stuck with her for a while.”

Ben checked behind him again and bit back a growl when a head of shiny chestnut red locks peeked out. Awesome.

“She’s cute,” Finn said, unaware Ben was about ready to rugby tackle him to the ground if he so much as took a step closer. He gave the older man a slow smile. “Is she why you’ve been missing? Did your dirty weekend turn into a dirty week?”

“What? No,” Ben snapped, still struggling to think of Rey as a sexual being without feeling guilty.

“O-kay,” Finn drawled. “Why don’t you bring her to the bar? Say hello to the locals.”

“Yeah, maybe. Anyway, gotta go,” Ben muttered, reaching the end of his patience and slamming the door shut on Finn’s surprised face.

He turned around and caught Rey’s bright hazel gaze. She yipped and disappeared into his bedroom. He stalked down the hallway, finding her hidden under a blanket.

“Alpha is displeased,” he announced, his voice as low as a bass drum.

He peeled back the bedclothes and she looked up at him with fearful eyes, instantly making him regret his tone. Ben opened his arms and Rey launched herself into his embrace.

He kissed her soft waves of hair, pulling her tight against his chest. “You have to obey me, little one. It’s a matter of survival now.”

She rubbed her face in the crook of his neck. “Alpha,” she murmured softly.

Rey pressed feather light kisses along Ben’s throat and jaw. Her arms clutched tight at his shoulders, her body pressed firm against his own. He let her have her way, stretching out on his bed and settling her on his lap. She continued kissing him, lips brushing against his cheeks and ears.

Finn had seen Rey. What the hell was he supposed to do about that? Maybe taking her to the bar for a quick visit with Rose would help the situation, normalise the fact that he suddenly had someone living with him. Rey’s limited English helped since it meant she couldn’t give herself away with words.

Ben blinked, startled as Rey’s questing mouth found his plush lips and she pressed an insistent kiss there, moist and succulent.

“No,” he snapped, pulling her off his face.

She frowned at him, looking put out. “Kiss,” she said insistently. “Rey kiss Alpha.”

“Not on the lips, sweetheart.”

“Why?” she demanded.

Ben bit back a growl of irritation. “Rey is not my mate. Only mated pairs kiss on the lips.”

To his surprise, she recoiled in horror. He heard her breath hitch in her throat, hazel eyes filling with tears.

“Rey, what—”

She pulled away, running out of his bedroom like a tan streak of lightning. Ben resisted the urge to rip the hair from his head. He stood up and followed more slowly, giving her time to calm down.

He discovered her on the couch, curled into foetal position, a shaggy throw covering her from head to toe. He pulled back the edge of the blanket to reveal a teary face. Ben lay down beside Rey on the couch, curling his bigger form around her slim figure, wrapping her inside his arms. He felt her quivering body still, tears drying up.

When at last he thought she was ready, he asked, “Baby, what’s wrong?” 

“Nothing,” she snuffled.

Ben began to laugh, the unexpectedness of her answer catching him by surprise. Rey wriggled around to glare at him, her eyes red rimmed. 

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he smirked, kissing her on a damp cheek. “I don’t mean to hurt your feelings, but you’ve just graduated to being a fully-fledged human woman.”

She laid her head on his shoulder. “Silly Alpha.”

Ben couldn’t help himself, chuckling once more. He tightened his hold until Rey squeaked and giggled. This girl… woman… female… she was changing his life. He’d never been in such disarray and yet surrounded by so much joy. 

“Alpha?”

“Hmm?”

“You’re Rey’s Alpha, yes?”

He kissed the tip of her nose. “Yes, sweetheart.”

She snuggled closer. “Okay. Good.” 

Rey closed her eyes and fell asleep. Ben luxuriated in her fragrant feminine presence as his mind ticked through how best to assuage Rose and Finn’s concerns.

Ben waited a couple of nights before taking Rey to The Red Sword.

She was flushed with excitement, her little hand trembling in his as they stepped through the door. Ben had dressed her in a black tank top and a pleated lavender skirt that fell all the way to the floor. It was the best thing he could come up with considering Rey still refused to put on underwear. She’d worked hard to pile her hair into three chestnut red buns.

It was a Tuesday evening so things were quiet. A couple of regulars greeted Ben, surprised to see him with a girl while Finn tended bar. The place was so dead Finn and Rose were able to join them at a table, their faces curious. Ben fielded most questions, his hand on Rey’s knee as if afraid she would take flight.

Rey was impeccably behaved, content to listen to the conversation, keeping her answers short and sweet. Of course, she’d been to the bar dozens of times in her wolf shape. Ben wondered what she thought about it now that she was human. She didn’t like her beer, wrinkling her nose after one sip and pushing the bottle towards him.

Finn was smitten. It surprised Ben to see the younger man falling all over himself to impress Rey, cracking outrageous jokes and giving her brilliant smiles. Rey was shy at first, but under Finn’s admiring attention she began to bloom, cheeks pink and eyes wide with enjoyment. 

Ben was pleased by how well Rey was adapting to her first social gathering. Finn and Rose didn’t know the truth of her origins, after all, so they weren’t handling her with kid gloves. Neither one seemed put off by her mannerisms or simplicity of speech. She was just a shy young lady visiting Ben Solo because her mother and his had once been friends.

As the night wore on and the regulars moseyed home, Finn took Rey to a corner of the bar to teach her how to play darts. Ben nursed his foundling’s beer, watching her blush and giggle as Finn continued to flirt outrageously.

_You’re such a fool, Solo, thinking you’d be the only guy for Rey._

The thought pierced his heart like an arrow. How could he have been so arrogant believing Rey would only ever need him, want him? Ben drained his beer with uncharacteristic thirst. Finn was a good looking guy. What would Ben do if Rey asked to be with the younger man? How would he react? As her Alpha, Ben was pack leader, provider and caregiver. That didn’t mean he was her life mate. He’d told Rey as much just a few days ago.

Ben worked hard to treat Rey platonically. It would be wrong of him to seduce his newly shapeshifted she-wolf when she didn’t know all her options. Her future was unmapped and quite possibly didn’t include him, though the very idea of Rey out there in the big wide world made Ben’s heart twist inside his chest. It hurt.

“I know I’m not imagining things based on that look on your face.”

Startled out of gloomy thoughts, Ben turned to Rose and saw her dark eyes were glossy with tears. Finn currently had one hand on Rey’s hip while the other was wrapped around her fist as she held a dart, showing her how to throw. Ben would have been irritated at the sight of another male touching his girl, except he was suddenly aware of Rose’s pain.

“Damnit, Rose, I’m sorry,” he said under his breath, reaching out to take her hand.

Her smile wobbled. “I thought he liked me. All those nights Finn stuck around to help me close up while you were gone… I guess he was just after the extra cash.”

“Finn cares about you,” Ben said, squeezing her fingers. “Come on, Rosie. What’s not to like?”

Rose gave a self-deprecating laugh. “My sister always told me men are simple creatures. If one of them is interested, you’ll know. You won’t have to beg and plead for his time and attention.”

“Sounds like a smart woman.”

“Paige was the best,” Rose agreed. 

“Finn’s just taking care of Rey because she’s new in town and…”

“Please, Ben,” Rose said sharply, “don’t patronize me. Finn has never looked at me the way he’s looking at Rey right now.”

Ben fell silent as Finn’s hearty guffaws and Rey’s peals of laughter floated over to them. “Rose, why are you here? In Takodana, I mean.”

The almond-eyed beauty looked at him in surprise. Ben had never asked before this. 

“The usual sob story,” Rose said diffidently. “I had a violent step-father. He graduated from hitting my mother to turning his anger onto Paige and myself.” Rose paused and went to the bar to fix herself a stiff drink. She brought the tumbler of scotch back to the table with her, draining half of it with a grimace before continuing. “Paige always protected me. No matter how bad the bastard got, she’d throw herself in front of me. Her selflessness used to drive my step-dad crazy.”

Ben had a bad feeling about the direction of Rose’s story. “Where’s Paige now?”

“Dead,” Rose said bluntly, saluting Ben with the tumbler and finishing the liquor. “But not how you’re imagining. It was a drunk driver in the end. A completely random accident of fate. Can you believe it?”

“Rose, I’m so sorry.”

She nodded, blinking back fresh tears. “I know you are, Ben. You mean it, too. You’re one of the good guys.”

“Why Takodana?” he asked after a moment’s pause. “Why stay here?”

“Why not?” Rose shrugged. “Paige’s death gave me the courage to finally leave home. I hitchhiked across Coruscant and an old woman driving a motor home offered to bring me here. Maz said my belonging was ahead of me, crazy old bat. Anyway, I met this tall, dark bartender the night I arrived in Takodana and the rest is history.” 

“I’m a sorry excuse for a saviour, Rose.”

“No, Ben, you’re really not,” she said with a kind of sad resignation. “I know you don’t want me either, but wouldn’t it be simpler if you did?”

“You deserve better than me, Rosie,” he said, suddenly uncomfortable.

“There’s no one better than you, Ben Solo,” she declared, drunkenly launching herself across an empty chair and into his arms.

Ben caught the small brunette easily, hands wrapping around her waist to hold her steady. Rose pressed plump breasts against his blue checked shirtfront as her lips found his mouth. 

Ben stiffened in place. Rose had done this once before, testing the boundaries of their friendship. This time the kiss had more to do with Finn than anything he himself could offer. Before he could set her aside, Ben heard an odd sound, like a hissing cat. 

Rose squealed as strong hands pulled her off Ben, before pushing hard enough that she fell to the floor. Ben stared as Rey smacked him on the chest, her face livid, her breath coming in furious pants. 

“Rey, what—?”

“You lie, Alpha,” she gasped, so angry she was struggling to form the words. “You say to kiss on lips is for life mates. Is Rose life mate? Is she your chosen?”

Good grief. Ben glanced at Finn to see if he was listening, but he’d knelt by Rose’s side, helping the other girl to her feet. 

“Rey, sweetheart, this is just a mistake,” Ben said softly.

“Mistake?” Rey screamed. “Rose will not have you!”

Before Ben could even wonder what that meant, Rey turned and launched herself at the unsuspecting waitress. Rose yelled as Rey snatched a fistful of her hair, but this time the other woman was more prepared. The brunette responded in kind, kicking and scratching whatever parts of Rey she could reach. Rey went wild, hands clawing and teeth gnashing. Finn fell back from the two women in shock.

“Enough!” Ben roared, and his bass voice filled the bar, making the glasses rattle. 

Rey and Rose froze on the floor, startled by the command in his tone. Ben reached down and picked Rey up by the waist, holding her against him like a child.

“Rose, you okay?” he asked, receiving a glower from Rey for his troubles. 

“Y-yeah,” Rose gasped. “Just keep that wildcat away from me.”

Ben tightened his grip on Rey who was beginning to fight his hold. “I’m gonna sort this out,” he promised. “I think it’s time we call it a night.”

He carried Rey out like a fractious kitten, painfully aware both Finn and Rose were watching in astonishment. Ben tossed Rey onto the passenger seat of his truck and gunned it back to the cabin. She sat fuming beside him, so angry he almost expected her to shapeshift back to her wolf form. No such luck.

By the time they arrived home, Rey’s expression was as dark as a thundercloud, arms crossed over her chest and mouth set in a tremulous pout. Ben unceremoniously threw her over his shoulder and walked to their bedroom, dumping her in the middle of the bed.

Safe in the knowledge that they were away from prying eyes, he spoke to her at last. “You have some explaining to do, Rey.”


	10. Tear Out Your Tenderness

Ben had never been so upset in all his life. It wasn’t that Rey’s behaviour was embarrassing or she could have potentially hurt a good friend, but her actions were so extraordinary she’d came close to exposing the fact she wasn’t entirely human.

He glared at his foundling, but she was looking far from repentant. “Explain yourself,” he repeated. 

“Explain?” she snarled, eyes flashing and limbs taut. She was crouched on the bed as if getting ready to leap at him. “You explain! I have been clear.”

“As clear as mud,” Ben spluttered. “Why did you attack Rose?”

“She is my rival,” Rey said in a tone that indicated he was an idiot for not realising this before.

“No, she’s not,” he snapped. “Look, I know you saw Rose kiss me, but it was a drunken mistake, do you understand? She was sad and wanted comfort.”

“Because she wants you, Alpha,” Rey replied, baring her teeth. “I cannot allow that.”

Ben threw his hands up in the air as if begging relief from some unknown presence. “You say Rose is your rival. For what?”

Rey’s mouth dropped open, scarlet patches blooming in her cheeks. For a second Ben wondered if she was in tears and then realised no, she was just that angry.

 _“You,”_ Rey screeched, launching herself at him, little fists hammering on his chest. 

Ben caught her by the wrists, holding his panting she-wolf against his rigid body. “What?”

“I wish to be mated with you, Alpha,” she gasped, lips quivering, lashes fluttering.

Ben shook his head almost before he could understand her words. “No, Rey, you’re too young. You have a whole world to explore. You need time to develop your individual tastes and personality. Don’t assume this is all there is.” 

“Assume? _Assume?”_ Rey spat. “Always you assume and you do not ask, Alpha. Why not ask me what it is I want? What I desire?”

Ben swallowed hard. “What do you want, Rey?”

“You,” she replied forcefully. “I only want you.”

“You don’t know what you’re saying,” Ben said exasperatedly. “Tonight, with Finn, you were enjoying yourself. Not only is he closer in age to you but his personality is the opposite of mine. I’m old and grim while Finn’s young and funny.”

Rey flushed. “Finn is nice, Ben, but he is not you. I did not realise to be with you I must not have other friends. I will not talk to him again.”

“No! That’s not what I meant,” Ben groaned. “Of course, you can have friends, You’re so new to the human condition, Rey. It’s not fair of me to assume…” She glared at him and he cleared his throat. “To _expect_ you to stay with me forever.” 

“Do you find me deficient, Alpha? Am I so lacking?” Rey’s hazel eyes swam with tears.

“No, baby, of course not.” Ben resisted the urge to take her in his arms, to kiss and comfort his girl. Was she his? 

“Then why are you fighting us?”

“Excuse me?”

“You fight us, Alpha. What we are is simple, easy… good.”

Ben dropped Rey’s hands and took a step away from her. Was she right? Was he coming in between himself and a chance at real happiness? He loved Rey already, that was true. He certainly lusted after her like a schoolboy with his first crush. Here she was offering herself to him, but all he could do was think up reasons to say no.

“Rey… you deserve so much better than me,” he said, his voice a low husk.

She lost her heated expression and smiled unexpectedly. “No, Alpha, I deserve you.”

She took a step toward him, laying her palms flat on his chest and standing on tiptoe. She lifted her face and he found himself bending down, bringing his mouth to her lips as if hypnotised. 

Ben kissed Rey. His Rey. He slid his tongue between her lips and she whimpered, leaning against him as he consumed her with slow and steady intensity. Tongue and teeth and plenty of moisture combined to make him rock hard, his girl fragrant and quivering in his arms.

At last he lifted his head and Rey smiled triumphantly up at him. “Is that a kiss for your mate, Alpha?”

He groaned and she hugged him around the neck, feet dangling off the floor.

“I want you to claim me, Alpha.” He stared at her and she rolled her eyes. “Claim my body,” she repeated as if to a moron. 

Ben swore softly under his breath. “Rey, baby, are you sure?”

She kissed him again, her little tongue wriggling inside his mouth. “Yes, please, Alpha,” she told him, breathless with desire.

“Rey, I didn’t save you so I could mate you. I feel like I’m taking advantage of you. You’re still a kid.”

She rolled her eyes at him. “Did you know, Alpha, that if I stayed my wolf self I would have died in four human years? Now I have two feet and not four I am at least twenty.”

He frowned suspiciously at her. “That’s remarkable math, sweetheart. How did you work that out?”

“The internet,” she beamed.

Ben started laughing. And here he thought she’d been fascinated by wildlife videos because she missed her old ways. 

Rey kissed him again, eyes bright and lips smiling. “Claim me, Alpha. It is all I have ever wanted.”

It occurred to Ben that the pretty female in his arms was asking for more than a tumble in the hay. She was demanding to be his one and only. As Han had reminded him, wolves mated for life. Ben had gone from being a crusty old bachelor to this beguiling possibility in a matter of weeks and his head was spinning. 

He needed to slow down, consider the implications of what was happening. Ben gently set Rey aside, fighting every instinct demanding he lay her flat on her back and have his way with her lithe body. He watched the smile on her face wobble and fade.

“Alpha?”

“We need to think about what we’re doing…” Ben began but was interrupted by an impatient sound from Rey.

“You have stood on two legs for too long, Alpha. These things are not decided by logic and time; ours is a bond created by fate and magic. Blood and instinct. I already know I am yours. Why can’t you accept it?”

Because he’d been careful for too long. Because the last time he lost control a man had died. Because he had no pack and no wolf mother and barely a human father. Because he had to make do with himself for so long that Rey was a gift he could barely comprehend.

She could not be for him. Surely not. What had he done to deserve her? Nothing.

Ben blinked when he realised Rey was moving away from him. She walked to his bed, stripping off her black tank top and shimmying out of her long skirt to reveal her nude form, creamy gold skin and shapely limbs, taut breasts with pink nipples pointed skyward, a tiny thatch of chestnut red curls highlighting the neat pink slit of her sex. Her hands were in her hair, undoing three buns, allowing shiny waves to cascade down her back. She crawled onto his bed and arranged herself on her hands and knees, pert bottom pointed his way.

Ben cleared his throat at the sight, but she wasn’t done. Rey looked over her shoulder at him, her smile wicked as she spread her knees, parting her thighs, revealing her wetly pulsing core. 

_Mine._

“I have seen you looking at me, Alpha,” she purred. “I am happy this body pleases you. It seems wasteful not to mount me when we would both enjoy the experience.”

Ben felt his cock thicken and swell, hard enough that it was painful against the restriction of his jeans. Rey was pink and moist… so ready her slice oozed like fresh honeycomb. 

_Mine._

“But if you insist on denying me, Alpha, then I will seek another mate. You seem determined to pair me with Finn. I could find out if he’s willing…”

Ben let out a growl that was half anger and half anguish. “You’re my female,” he snarled. “Mine, do you hear?”

His nails had thickened, sharpened and he used them to rip off his clothes. He caught a glimpse of himself in a mirror and saw his eyes glowed red, black fur beginning to emerge down his spine and along his shoulders. Muscles bulging, limbs thickening.

Rey stared at him in delight and then apprehension. He struggled to get himself under control. She was too small for him to claim as a werewolf… wasn’t she?

He leapt onto the bed, caging her body within his. He felt his female shiver, a whimper escaping her parted lips. 

“You want me, little one?” he growled, his voice turned deep and husky. “You wish to serve your Alpha with your sweet cunt?”

“Yes, Alpha,” Rey gasped, arching her back. “Please, Alpha.”

Ben’s conscience screamed at him to go slow, to be careful, to protect his girl. His werewolf half howled its need, desiring his female, wanting to be joined to her in the most primal way possible. For the first time in a long time, Ben allowed his feral side to take over.

He thrust his inhumanly swollen cock between her spread thighs, stroking her dripping slit. He was scorching hot and she appealingly warm. He sank his clawed hands into the bed, shredding his sheets, anchoring himself as he pushed his way inside his mate’s virginal sex.

She was almost painfully tight, pink petals splitting around his invading shaft and then clamping down on his hard erection. Her snug cunt swallowed him in slow inches until he was all the way inside, Rey skewered on his cock, twisting and whimpering. The tiny part of Ben’s consciousness that had stayed tethered to his humanity yelled at him to stop, desist, withdraw. And then she moaned, pushing back against him, soft buttocks rubbing against his pelvis. 

He lost his damn mind. He thrust and pumped like the beast he’d always known himself to be, but this time there was no shame, only pleasure. Rey’s velvet sheathe gripped his pointed wolf cock like a slick glove, making him feel things only possible in fairy tales. She rocked and whimpered beneath him, her pulse heightened, temperature skyrocketing.

Rey came with a soft scream, more honey gushing from her cunt to bathe his steel erection, her pink channel tightening its hold on his rod until he saw stars. Ben felt a strange tingling in his nether parts, a swelling around the root of his cock. He knew what knotting was, had read about it in his many attempts to understand more about his biology, but knowing how werewolves mated and feeling the hardening bulge push deep inside his mate’s wet opening were two different things.

He came in a flood of hot seed, filling her womb to overflowing, except his knot was there, keeping every tiny possibility of future progeny locked inside her. His physical release swelled Ben’s heart. He emptied his loneliness and lack inside this female who so willingly loved and desired him. Her vulnerability was like a healing balm to a werewolf who’d sent himself into exile. 

He pushed Rey flat against the mattress as her soft cunt ground against his thick cock, nearly mindless with bliss. Eventually, the knot shrank and he was able to slide out of her. His bones cracked as he continued to shapeshift, turning into pure black werewolf. She was so little beneath him and he made sure to keep his weight on his paws. He nudged her with his nose and rolled her onto her back to lick her wide-eyed face.

 _Female, she-wolf, mate..._  
_Sweet, soft, warm...  
Rey, Rey, Rey…_

She stroked the thick fur of his neck and he kept licking, his big wolf tongue leaving her golden skin shiny with moisture. That tongue found the soft hillocks of her firm breasts, paying attention to tight pink nipples. Rey whimpered, becoming aroused again so soon after her very first orgasm. 

She was unafraid of his werewolf form, uncowed by the fact the bed creaked under his weight, uncaring that he was all teeth and claw and bulging muscle. Rey… she wanted all of him, man and wolf. Ben was humbled by this knowledge.

The way she squirmed under his tongue made his blood simmer. He moved lower, enjoying her fingers grasped tight in his fur. His tongue teased the slit of her sex and she cried out. He gave a wolfish chuckle before diving deep, fucking her recently used pink tunnel with his big, rough tongue, teasing tender flesh until her clit peeked out of its hood like a ruby red gem.

Rey closed her eyes, surrendering to pleasure, and Ben felt his heart rate slow, his breath steady. He changed again beneath her clutching hands, snout and tongue shortening, fangs becoming teeth, thick pelt retracting into smooth skin. He was determined to prove his human mouth could be just as satisfying as his wolf’s muzzle and he sucked her provocative clit between his lips.

Rey wailed like a banshee, back arching as she rode a wave of intense pleasure. Ben held her in place, drawing out her orgasm with tender solicitude, flicking his tongue and forcing her body to yield to his. She was sobbing by the time her multiple orgasms came to an end, her slender figure aglow with sweat. 

Ben leaned back to look at Rey, his Rey, still quivering beneath his muscular thighs. He was hard once more, her cries of ecstasy arousing him. He wiped her honey from his jaw, eyes glowing red.

“Are you okay, Rey?” he made himself ask, though the beast inside did not care. She was his to do with as he pleased. And he was well pleased.

She nodded, staring up at him in awe.

“Do you still want to be my mate?”

She glared and he grinned, smile slipping when she wrapped her hand around his throbbing cock. He growled deep as she guided his aching manhood to her wet cunt. This time his cock was human shaped, with a bulging head that made her squeak as he pushed deep. Ben was pumping his hips within seconds, losing control once more. He bit down on her neck as he rammed his shaft inside Rey’s tightly clutching cunt. She let out a joyous laugh, wrapping herself around him.

Ben howled and his cock pulsed, unloading a seemingly endless stream of seed. The base of his shaft ballooned, and in shock he realised he was about to knot Rey while in human form. She cried out, rocking her hips, stimulating herself on the swollen flesh. 

He collapsed on top of her, breathless and spent. Rey mewled and Ben wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. Slowly his knot contracted and he pulled out, but she stayed pressed against him. Looking for love, for comfort… for him. 

Ben drew her against his sweaty body and Rey came willingly. They breathed as one.

“Well,” he offered at last, his voice a low husk, “that was interesting.”

She giggled and the sound made his heart flutter.

Rey. His girl. His mate. Life would never be the same again.


	11. You Are The Moon

It was like a dam had broken. Ben couldn’t keep his hands off Rey. 

The next forty-eight hours were a frenzy of activity as he fucked his mate deep into the mattress, and on the floor, and in the bath, up against cool bathroom tiles, several times on the couch and twice on the rug in front of the fireplace. He drew the line at the kitchen, but knew it was only a matter of time before he propped Rey against the dining table and pounded into her until they both came.

He’d never had so much sex in all his life. Ben was worried with all the sweating and grunting and grinding they might end up dehydrated, but their bodies seemed to be made for this… for each other.

It was only on day three that he looked at his mate, dopey from multiple orgasms since he’d decided her sweet pink cunt would be breakfast, and was startled by an intelligent thought breaking through his haze of lust.

“Rey, sweetheart, you’re not on birth control.” Ben choked on the words.

She blinked at him, hazel eyes glazed. “Birth control? Who is able to control birth, Alpha?”

“Humans,” he replied, going over the dozens of times he’d already pumped his seed into his girl’s womb. That ship had well and truly sailed. 

“Why would they do that?” Rey asked, looking interested.

“So a female doesn’t have to become pregnant if she doesn’t want to,” Ben answered, watching Rey closely. “Sweetheart, what if you’re… what if we’re… I mean, what if?”

She snuggled against his bare chest. “Then I will have your pups, Alpha,” she murmured. “Preferably all girls. That will be nice.”

He was startled by the idea of a house filled with daughters. Ben wasn’t sure whether to laugh or panic. “And you’re okay with that?”

Rey gave him a disparaging look. “I am wolf, Alpha. You confuse me with those two-legged creatures, their wants and desires, but I am not them. My needs are simple and true. To have a family with you is inevitable. It will be nice to grow our pack.”

“Our pack?” he repeated. Ben swore one day he’d stop feeling constantly stunned around Rey. 

She giggled and closed her eyes for a nap. 

After a week of exploring the latest stage of their relationship, Ben knew it was time to reintroduce Rey to his father. The old man hadn’t met her in her current form, but even more nerve wracking would be explaining she was now his mate. Han being Han, things could either go very well or very badly.

Rey got dressed up, putting on an olive green cotton dress with spaghetti straps and a calf-length skirt, the colour deepening the golden tan of her skin, highlighting the red in her three buns of hair. She preferred the freedom of a flowing skirt to jeans, and he let her have her way so long as she wasn’t naked. 

Han was expecting them for dinner and Ben picked up a bucket of chicken and a tub of slaw on the way to his childhood home. He greeted his father nervously at the door. The old man took the food from his hands, not noticing the slender female by Ben’s side.

“We’ll eat in here,” Han said, walking to the dining room. “I’ve already set the table and found an old dish for Rey to sup from. I thawed a pound of rump steak if she’s hungry.”

Ben exchanged a glance with an amused Rey and wondered anew if he should have warned his father over the phone. “Um, dad?” he called out, Rey clutching his hand.

“Made a fresh pot of coffee too if you want some of that…”

“Dad.”

“…though there’s a jug of lemonade in the fridge if you prefer…”

“Dad!”

“What?” Han snapped, pausing in his efforts to unpack the food. He turned around, brown eyes finally settling on Rey. “Ben… who’s this?”

He felt Rey’s grip tighten. “Dad, it’s Rey. She shapeshifted.”

Han’s jaw dropped open, the spoon he’d been using for the coleslaw dripping creamy dressing onto the floor. 

“You okay, dad?” Ben asked nervously. He hoped he hadn’t given his father heart failure.

Han gazed at Rey’s delicate face in wonder, his eyes moving lower to focus on her fingers intertwined with his son’s. He spoke brusquely to hide emotion. “I told you it was love at first sight.”

Rey blushed and Ben sighed, a knot unravelling in his chest.

Han laid a place at the table for Rey before bringing over the chicken, salad and a fresh loaf of bread. As they sat down to eat, Ben had the strongest sensation of déjà vu. It took him a moment to realise Rey’s feminine presence was recalling times when Leia was alive and they would eat together as a family.

He watched his father laugh at something Rey said and felt his eyes swell. This female… both wolf and girl… she had already given him so much. 

They were digging into dessert- Han supplied store bought chocolate mousse almost apologetically, though judging by the sounds of appreciation Rey was making they were about to start buying the stuff by the crate- before his father brought up a subject Ben had been avoiding.

“Who does she belong to, Ben?” Han said, looking bemused as Rey determinedly licked the inside of a nearly empty carton like the puppy she’d once been.

Ben glared at him, eyebrows snapping together, and Han held up a conciliatory hand. 

“You know what I mean, kid. Who _did_ she belong to? I know she’s yours now, but werewolves don’t appear spontaneously in nature. She has the blood of some clan running in her veins.” 

Ben shrugged. “I don’t know, dad. I can’t decide whether I should bury my head in the sand and hope for the best or investigate further and potentially stumble across trouble.”

“I couldn’t tell you the answer,” Han frowned. “At least your mother and I knew what we were running from… that is, until the very end.”

“And then there’s that,” Ben said through gritted teeth. “Mom deserves to be avenged.”

Han began clearing the dishes. “Perhaps. Or maybe you should focus on your new mate and let the dead bury the dead. That’s what Leia would tell you to do.”

Ben stood to help but his father waved him back to his seat. He considered Han’s words, amber eyes on Rey. She pulled her face from the mousse carton, cheeks smeared with chocolate and beamed at him. He realised with painful clarity he would always put her first. Being Rey’s Alpha impacted everything he did from that point onwards. 

She noted the intensity of his gaze and left her seat, plopping down on his lap and offering chocolatey lips for a kiss. Ben snickered, cleaning her face with a paper napkin before giving Rey what she wanted. A cough interrupted them.

“I have something for the two of you,” Han said gruffly.

Rey gazed at the old man expectantly, unembarrassed to be discovered entwined with his son. Ben tried to adopt her nonchalant attitude less successfully.

Han laid a black cloth on the dining table for Ben to unwrap. His breath twisted in his throat as something light dropped into his hands. Rey cooed, reaching for the item.

“Mother’s pendant,” Ben said, unable to believe his eyes. 

The townsfolk in Takodana used to think Leia wore a bejewelled cross, but in fact it was a sword. _No, a saber,_ he corrected himself. Leia referred to it as a saber, one with a crossguard hilt. It was the Skywalker family crest, modelled after a weapon used by her Alpha male ancestors.

“I thought mom was buried with this,” Ben said, unable to help the accusation in his tone.

Han looked abashed. “I found Leia’s necklace amongst her clothes. She was careful never to transform with it around her neck, probably worried she might lose the thing.”

“Mom loved this pendant,” Ben agreed. “The only time she was without it was when we shapeshifted to hunt.”

“It was so much a part of your mother I couldn’t let it go,” Han mumbled. “It’s been in my wardrobe for decades. I used to take it out on hard days.”

Ben was struck by the mental image of his father weeping over a cluster of rubies. He couldn’t imagine how he’d react if he lost Rey and she’d only been in his life a few months.

Han cleared his throat. “I know what being together means amongst werewolves. This is forever, am I right?”

“Yes,” Rey said firmly.

Ben grinned. Possessive little thing.

“Shapeshifters don’t do rings, but I think it would make your mother really happy if Rey wore her necklace. You know, as a symbol that she’s now part of the family.”

Ben traced blood red rubies with one finger before picking up the necklace by its thin platinum chain and fastening it around Rey’s neck. She looked delighted, clutching the exquisite pendant.

“Thank you, Han, father of Ben,” she said with a formality that surprised both men. Rey stood and gave the old man a kiss on the cheek.

Ben smothered a laugh as Han turned tomato red. There was an aptness to his father’s gift that echoed in his soul. His dad was right; Leia would have loved this moment.

They lingered a while longer over cups of coffee, though Rey’s mug was more milk than caffeine, taking their leave once it neared midnight.

“We have one more thing to do tonight, Alpha,” Rey said as they clambered into his truck.

Ben looked at her in surprise, the ruby pendant at her throat dazzling even in the moonlight. “It’s a little late to be stocking up on chocolate mousse, sweetheart.”

She rolled her eyes expressively. “Silly Alpha. I only meant we should go to the bar and see Rose. I would like to apologise.”

He felt a twinge of pride at this unexpected humility from a former she-wolf. “Are you sure?”

“Yes,” Rey said simply. “You were right. I attacked unnecessarily.”

Ben smiled. “I like the idea, little one. I hoped you two would be friends.”

Rey arched a brow in his direction. “To be clear, Alpha, if friend Rose kisses you again I will have to fight her.”

“You gonna kick her ass?”

“Ass kicking, yes,” Rey said amiably. 

Ben drove in the direction of The Red Sword, suddenly unsure as to the wisdom of bringing his spitfire back in contact with Rose, who was no pushover herself. 

“Rey, you can’t go around beating up people,” he said, spotting the red lights of the bar in the distance. “It may be how disputes are resolved as a wolf pack, but humans are more civilised than that.”

“Human behaviour is frustrating,” she sniffed. “The wolf way is easier.”

Ben tried not to laugh. “Simpler, perhaps, but I’m not sure about easier.” He parked the truck and leaned over to kiss Rey on the lips. “Now behave.”

They walked in together, Rey’s hand in his. She’d discovered hand holding as a substitute for her constant desire to nuzzle against him, which was a step in the right direction in Ben’s opinion.

Rose was behind the bar counting the till while Finn swept the floor.

“Hey guys,” Ben greeted them. 

Rose looked up with a smile that immediately stiffened when she spotted Rey. Finn paused in what he was doing as well. Rather like Han, his gaze zeroed in on their linked hands.

“What’s up?” Rose greeted the couple coolly.

Rey spoke before Ben could say anything else. “I’m sorry, Rose,” she declared with disarming forthrightness. “I thought you wanted my Alph… my Ben.”

Ben stifled a groan. At least Rey had remembered to refer to him by name and not designation.

Unexpectedly, Rose blushed. “Um, yeah, I’m sorry about that too,” she responded, shooting Ben a quick look. “I didn’t realise you two were together.”

“We were not then,” Rey said helpfully, “but now Ben is my mate.”

“You have a funny way of talking,” Rose laughed. 

“I never thought I’d see the day Ben Solo found himself a girlfriend,” Finn said from his corner. 

Ben stared at the younger man. He sounded almost hostile.

“Not girlfriend,” Rey clarified. “Mate. Like a spouse.”

Rose choked on the beer she’d just sipped. “Wow. Stake your claim, girl. I’m really starting to like this one, Ben.”

Rey beamed at Rose. 

“I know it’s sudden…” Ben began.

Rose shook her head, interrupting him. “Not really, no. I realised long ago that the occasional one night stand went against the grain of the kind of man you are. This…” she waved her hand at Rey who was standing so close to him she was snuggled against his chest, “…this is far more understandable.”

“We will be friends, Rose,” Rey happily interjected, “then you can tell me about the one night stand.”

“No, nope, not on your life,” Ben spluttered. 

Both women laughed and Ben had a distinct feeling he was being ganged up on.

“Congratulations,” Finn said, putting away the broom.

“I’m not sure you mean that,” Ben replied. He’d had enough of Finn’s strange behaviour and decided to call him on it. 

Finn shrugged. “I’m just trying to process this situation.”

Ben looked over at Rey who was chattering with Rose, her fingers playing with the ruby pendant around her neck. “Some things are instinctive,” he murmured, recalling Rey’s firm opinions on their relationship.

“You love her,” Finn said abruptly, his dark gaze on Ben’s face.

“Very much so,” Ben agreed, realising there was no need to hide the sentiment.

“Ben, I… I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

Ben frowned at him, surprised by the genuine remorse in Finn’s tone. “I’ve only just realised it. How were you supposed to know?”

Finn looked like he had more to say but just then the front door of the bar swung open and a stranger walked in. 

“Someone said I could find Finn Jones in here. Where’s he at?”

Ben was shocked to see Finn’s complexion turn ashen. His werewolf senses were on high alert as he faced the intruder.


	12. No Turning Back

The four souls inside The Red Sword stood unmoving as they surveyed the newcomer.

He was a good looking man with mahogany curls and intense dark eyes, dressed casually in a beige shirt with sleeves folded up to his elbows, khaki pants and worn boots. Ben could feel the distress coming off Finn in waves and suppressed a desire to growl.

The man finally spotted Finn, and to Ben’s surprise he broke into a charming grin.

“Hey, brother!” he called out.

Almost despite himself, Finn returned the smile, stepping forward and hugging the man in greeting. Finn turned to face Ben, reluctantly introducing the stranger. “Ben Solo, this is my foster brother, Poe. Poe, meet Ben.”

Ben was raised to be a hand shaker, but there was something in the air that had his hackles up. He nodded at Poe who responded in kind, offering Ben the kind of once over someone might give a rival.

Poe’s eyes turned to the two women and he took a step toward them but Ben had already crossed the bar to stand by their side. 

_Who’s the possessive one now?_ he asked himself. Every instinct was telling him not to trust the newcomer.

“I’m Rose,” the brunette spoke, and Ben suspected she was deliberately attempting to break the tension. “I didn’t know Finn had a foster brother. It’s nice to meet you.”

Poe barely acknowledged her words, his eyes on Rey. “And who’s this?”

Rey bared her teeth. Ben wasn’t sure if it was in response to his own caution or whether she was feeling the same miasma of emotions that he was.

“Rey is mine,” Ben said, the tone conversational but his words purposeful. Drawing a metaphorical line in the sand.

Poe’s gaze flickered between the two of them. “If you say so.”

“Are you visiting Finn?” Ben asked, wanting to move past the supercharged atmosphere.

“Finn called me. Didn’t you, baby bro?”

All eyes swivelled to Finn who was still looking worried. “Um, yeah. If you guys don’t mind, I’ll finish up now so Poe and I can catch up.”

“I’m liking it here,” Poe protested. “Do we have to go?” His gaze lingered on Rey.

“Come on, man,” Finn snapped, already heading out the door. 

Poe dropped Rey a wink before following Finn.

“What the hell was that about?” Rose demanded, breathing an audible sigh of relief once the two men had gone.

Ben shook his head, his arm curling around Rey’s shoulders. “I don’t know, Rosie, but promise me you’ll lock the doors tonight.”

“Don’t you worry,” Rose agreed. “I may even grab the shotgun from behind the counter.”

Ben hustled Rey into his truck, stepping on the gas to get them home quicker.

“Finn’s brother was disrespectful, Alpha,” Rey spoke from the passenger seat after several minutes of silence, her brow furrowed. 

Ben felt a pang of distress seeing her concern. “It’s fine, little one. He’s gone now.”

She shook her head. “You say humans do not battle, they are civilised when they disagree, but that one was looking for a fight.”

Ben cut through the forest trail that led to their cabin, not knowing how to respond. The problem was he agreed with Rey. 

He pulled up so quickly in their driveway his tyres sprayed gravel. Ben opened the passenger door for Rey, keeping her beside him even on the short walk to the front door.

“It’s quicker to navigate a forest on your feet, Solo,” a low voice declared.

Ben turned, thrusting Rey behind him.

Poe emerged from the shadows, his body naked in the moonlight.

“You seem to have lost your wardrobe, Poe,” Ben said through gritted teeth. 

The well-muscled man rolled his shoulders. “It’s the most annoying thing about our way of life, constantly having to replace clothes.”

Poe began to shapeshift before Ben’s eyes, his muscles bulging, a thick mahogany pelt pushing through previously smooth pores. He stopped the change before he was full beast, still speaking with a human mouth though his words had grown guttural. “This is the real me, Solo.”

Ben took in the sight of another werewolf with little surprise. He was overcome by a feeling of resignation. From the moment he’d found the girl pup shivering next to her mother wolf’s dead body, this moment was inevitable. He’d ignored his ancestry for too long and now his werewolf blood demanded payment for that ignorance. 

Behind him, Rey stiffened in reaction. Ben’s whole focus was on keeping her safe. 

“What do you want, Poe?”

The werewolf bared teeth that dripped saliva. “You have what’s ours.”

“Ours?”

Poe turned his head and another figure shuffled forward. Like Poe, Finn had already undressed in preparation for his change. Chocolate brown fur began to sprout, his bone cracking and shifting, fangs and claws appearing. Despite the orange glow in his eyes, he looked regretful. 

“Ah, Finn,” Ben said sadly, “I’d hoped you wouldn’t betray me.”

The brown werewolf whined and Poe growled, snapping his jaw in the air as if demanding silence.

“Are you his pack leader?” Ben asked, curious despite the imminent threat. After all, he’d never met another werewolf apart from his mother. Rey was unique. 

Poe chuckled. “You should be grateful our Alpha isn’t here, Solo. He would tear you to shreds for your mistake.”

“And what mistake is that?” Ben asked, knowing the answer but wanting to hear the werewolf’s reasoning.

“You have taken a daughter of our clan as your mate. You had no right,” Poe said coldly. “Hand her over and we will not kill you.”

Rey clutched Ben’s arm and he gave her a reassuring smile. “No one’s going anywhere, little one,” he murmured. 

Poe gave a barking laugh. “You didn’t tell me he was so amusing, Finn.” He focused his red-rimmed gaze on Ben. “I can respect your misguided need to protect the female, forsaken one. Tell you what, I’ll show you mercy by ending your life quickly.” 

“How am I forsaken?” Ben asked, struck by the term.

“You have no pack, no leader,” Poe replied, sounding disturbed. “It is unnatural.”

“He is Alpha,” Rey yelled from behind Ben, her face more angry than scared. His fierce little she-wolf. 

Poe glared at her. “Enough talking. Time for death.”

“As you wish,” Ben murmured. 

He was shocked by how calm he felt, as if he were stepping into a role he was always meant to play. He was born to this, he realised, this savage society that he hadn’t before experienced. All his life he’d kept himself on a leash and now… now his brutal truth was a welcome response.

Poe continued to change, turning full wolf in seconds. Ben watched as the werewolf’s muscles tensed, readying himself.

“Stay safe, mate,” Ben told Rey, and she nodded.

His response time was instantaneous. Ben ran, leaping into the air, his body changing before his paws hit the ground. He felt the dizzying force of his shapeshift, the almost drunken pleasure of enhanced senses and thickened muscles, his fur the black velvet of the night sky. He threw back his head and howled. 

Poe froze in place and Finn took a step back. Han had been right about his size; Ben was easily twice Finn’s build and significantly bigger than Poe. Ben sensed the other werewolves’ shock and took advantage of it, attacking Poe first. Razor sharp teeth sank into the male’s flank, tearing into muscle and sinew, blood gushing in Ben’s maw.

Poe yelped and Finn snarled, leaping into the fray. Ben shook Finn off with a powerful arm, slamming the brown werewolf against a nearby tree trunk. He turned back to Poe who was favouring his bloody side but gathering strength to attack. Rather than backing away, Ben stepped closer. He had a target in mind. 

He tore into Poe’s front leg with brutal efficiency, hampering the werewolf’s mobility. Ben’s blood sang and yet he remained in control, choosing to wound without killing. At last he backed off from the whining, bleeding mess he’d made of Poe, shifting onto two legs. Ben wiped his mouth with one hand, undisturbed by the blood of his foe. 

“Finn, take your brother and leave,” Ben ordered. His tone brooked no argument.

Finn shifted back as well, his face afraid. “You’re letting us go?”

“Just this once, Finn, for the sake of our friendship. It wasn’t all lies, was it?” 

The younger man shook his head. “No, Ben.” He looked as if he would say something else, but Rey rushed up to them.

“You do lie,” she exclaimed, tears in her eyes. “You say you are my friend, but you tried to take me from my Alpha.” She grabbed Ben’s hand and he wrapped an arm around her narrow shoulders.

“Rey…” Finn began, his tone pleading.

Poe groaned and Ben scowled as the other man blinked blearily up at him, clutching his bleeding side.

“Tell your master Rey is mated and safe; he needn’t be concerned for her. We only want to be left alone.”

“You have no idea, do you?” Poe hissed through clenched teeth. “You may have the power of an Alpha, but your understanding is that of a pup.”

Ben shrugged broad shoulders, his clothes lying tattered on the ground. “Perhaps. I will protect what is mine, and that means Rey.”

Poe glowered at him, but his injuries were severe enough that he waved Finn closer without further argument. Ben watched with his enhanced eyesight until the two males disappeared down the path carved out by his truck. It was only then that he returned to the cabin, having already sent Rey inside. 

She threw herself at him as soon as he walked through the door, arms wrapping around his neck, her slender form trembling. He hugged her tight, one hand stroking mussed chestnut hair. 

“You’re alright, little one,” Ben murmured, though his body still coursed with adrenaline from his fight. 

He set her down and locked the door, arming the cabin’s security. He’d inherited his father’s paranoia and for once he was grateful for that fact. 

Rey wrapped an arm around his waist as soon as he was done and Ben patted her on the rump absentmindedly. He was covered in blood- granted, someone else’s- and needed a shower. His mind was going at a hundred miles an hour, certain they hadn’t seen the last of Finn and his pack mates.

Ben grunted as Rey unexpectedly reached between his naked thighs, stroking his cock with her warm little hand. He stiffened immediately, his lust easily stoked after the fight.

“Rey, I’m covered in blood, sweetheart,” he murmured, though he was already pressing his mouth against the curve of her neck, sucking a bruise into golden skin.

“Alpha defended Rey,” she said, her delicate face solemn. “You risked yourself for me.”

“You don’t have to…” Ben began, and then groaned as his mate sank to her knees and swallowed the bulging head of his cock between soft lips. 

Rey suckled deep, her free hands pumping the remainder inches of his swollen shaft and fondling his full sac. Sex was hard and swift, Ben draping Rey over the back of the couch and gripping her slim thighs, spreading her wide. He entered her roughly, his girl mewling like a kitten as he pounded her tight little cunt. She was soaking wet, her body hot to touch.

He came deep inside her with a growl, biting down on the back of her neck, knotting her for a good twenty minutes before they were able to separate once more. They lay together on the living room rug afterwards, breathless and spent. 

“Thank you for that, little one,” Ben mumbled into her hair. His surge of adrenaline had eased, his thoughts clearer and more coherent.

“You are my Alpha,” Rey said simply, kissing the bicep she was using as a pillow. 

“So you keep telling me,” Ben chuckled.

He considered his next steps. 

Ben had the money to fly himself and Rey to another continent, except his mate didn’t have a passport. He couldn’t imagine the red tape they’d have to go through to obtain formal paperwork. Nor would he risk Rey’s deportation by exposing her presence to government authorities. Paying for fake documents were all well and good in the movies, but who did that in real life?

Ben shook his head, carding his fingers through Rey’s hair. His parents had simply kept moving when they were hiding from his grandfather. They didn’t have a single cent to their name and yet they’d successfully evaded Anakin Skywalker’s hounds…

“Dad,” Ben said explosively, sitting up so quickly Rey tumbled off him. 

She gave him a reproachful look as he went looking for his cell. Three minutes later he called Han. After his second attempt, his father picked up.

“Hello?” Han greeted him, voice husky from sleep.

“Dad,” Ben replied, exhaling in relief. 

“Ben? You crazy, kid? It’s almost four in the morning.”

“We were attacked,” Ben said abruptly. 

“What?” Han replied, still woozy.

“Attacked, dad. A couple of werewolves tried to kidnap Rey.”

“Are you okay?” Han asked, his voice growing clearer.

“Yeah, I fought them off. You need to be careful, though.”

“For them to come after me, they’d have to assume I mattered to you.”

Ben grimaced, feeling helpless as another person he loved sounded afraid. “I’m sorry, dad. I have no idea what’s about to happen next but forewarned is forearmed.”

“I’ll open up my gun safe,” Han said determinedly. “What’s the plan, son?”

“We’ll have to hit the road,” Ben sighed. 

Han started to chuckle. “Just like old times.”

Ben rolled his eyes at the ceiling. “I’m glad you think this is funny…” 

But he was interrupted when Han made a strange choking noise and the line disconnected. 

Ben stared at his cell phone, refusing to believe what he knew in his heart to be true. He called Han half a dozen times before finally giving up. This time, no one was on the other end.

His father was gone.


	13. Bloodied Feet

“He’s not here, Alpha.”

Ben stopped himself from saying something sarcastic just in time. It wasn’t Rey’s fault he was on edge and about ready to snap.

She’d made him shower before getting dressed and speeding their way to Han’s place. It was the right call since anyone seeing him covered in blood would have raised alarm bells. Still, he couldn’t help resenting the delay when they arrived to find Han’s front door open, his cell phone on the floor of his bedroom.

Ben turned to see Rey gazing at a family portrait from a time when he’d been skinny with sticky out ears and a shaggy mop of hair. To be fair, the only thing that had changed since then was his body mass.

“Perhaps it will be nice to have a boy child as well,” she murmured misty-eyed.

He bit back an oath. Now was not the time to be planning their future filled with multiple pups. Damnit, what if Rey was already pregnant? They’d certainly been going at it hard enough.

He sank onto the edge of his parent’s bed, head in his hands. He was struggling to think straight. 

“Alpha.” Rey knelt by his side, focused on him with big hazel eyes.

“No,” he snarled, muscles tight. “I’m not anyone’s Alpha. This is my fault.”

“How?” she asked, brow furrowed. 

“I knew dad was in trouble. If I’d stopped to think for a second…”

“What?” she prompted.

Ben drew a shuddering breath. “I should have killed Poe and Finn. Maybe then Han would be safe.”

“That is not your way,” Rey said calmly. 

“My way is wrong!” he yelled, his voice deepening into a wolf’s grow. He waited for his mate to pull away from him, acknowledging he was weak and indecisive, but she only drew closer.

“You showed mercy to ignorant wolves,” she declared. “That is as it should be. You could not have known their response. And even if you did kill those two, we do not know how many others waited in the shadows.”

Ben was about to argue further when he heard movement in the living room. He stood, already shapeshifting as he made his way to the front of the house. Rey jumped up as well and he pushed her behind him.

Ben spotted the figure wandering his father’s house and changed back to his human form before he ripped out of his clothes. “What the hell do you want?”

Finn raised his hands as if in surrender. “I’m just the messenger.”

Ben glared at him, Rey by his side. She was right; even now, he couldn’t conceive killing the younger male. He said nothing, folding his arms over his chest.

“Ben, I’m sorry this happened,” Finn said, aggrieved. “If I’d known you and Rey were mated, I never would have…”

“What’s the message?” Ben snapped, interrupting him.

“Right,” Finn said, swallowing hard. “My pack leader has your father. He will meet with you and the she-wolf in Takodana forest to discuss terms of release. He says… he says Han will pay the price should you refuse to reveal yourself.”

Rage flooded Ben’s soul, burying his doubts in hot emotion. “What is the name of your Alpha?”

Finn licked his lips, eyes wide. “We- we are not allowed to speak Alpha’s name unless he permits.”

“Are you kidding?” Ben scowled. “He’s not here, Finn. Just give me his name.”

“You don’t know him like I do,” Finn protested. “He’s one of the ancients. He’s killed and subdued entire clans. His power is great.”

“You are much afraid of your Alpha,” Rey said softly. 

Ben bit back a growl. He was in no mood to show compassion. “Fine. Whatever. Where are we supposed to meet?”

“By Lake Nymeve at sunset,” Finn said, adding hesitantly, “Ben, it’s a trap. You know that, right?”

“Of course I do, but what other option do I have?” He frowned. “I don’t know why I’m discussing this with you.”

“Let me help,” Finn said, taking a step forward. “I was wrong calling Poe when I found out Rey had shapeshifted.”

“You didn’t know I was a werewolf?” Rey asked in surprise.

“We’re never sure. Not until maturation, which tends to be around the sixth month. Even then, shapeshifting abilities may be irregular. It’s why I was sent to Takodana. We knew your wolf mother had escaped to this area and I was supposed to wait to see if you’d resurface.”

“Enough!” Ben declared. Rey gave him a reproving look but he glowered at her. “We can’t trust anything that comes out of his mouth.”

Finn groaned. “Ben, you have to see it from my eyes! One day out of nowhere you appeared with a wolf pup, claiming her mother was slain and I thought…”

“You thought I’d killed Rey’s mother,” Ben said, startled.

Finn nodded, looking wretched. “Alpha and his personal guard hunted the runaway she-wolf, but they claimed to have lost the trail in Takodana Forest.”

“Your Alpha lied,” Ben snarled. “He killed Rey’s mother as if she were prey. I believe he was interrupted by two hunters- those idiots Armie and Dolph- because someone returned to get rid of the body later. It was evidence something unnatural had occurred.” He considered the shivering wolf pup Rey had once been. “If Rey wasn’t so small, they may have found her. Somehow she hid, only returning to her mother’s side when the coast was clear.”

Rey clutched his hand, her face sorrowful. “All I remember is the cold,” she whispered.

“Let me help you, if only to give you a fighting chance to survive my Alpha.” Finn reached into his jeans pocket and Ben stiffened, but all he did was retrieve a crumpled ball of paper. “I knew I’d need some kind of proof I was on your side. I found a pencil and paper and told Han to write a note, that I’d sneak it to you. It’s crazy impossible locating stationery in a werewolf camp, by the way.”

Ben snatched the dirty scrap from Finn’s outstretched hand, heart pounding in his chest. In capitals and underlined three times was one word: RUN. That seemed about right. Typical Han, making the heroic play at the end.

Rey took the note from him, eyes wide as she read it. Her reading skills were stronger than her writing ability, and a three letter word was easy enough for her to decipher.

“What will we do, Alpha?” Rey asked.

Ben looked at his mate, his heart splitting in two. “He’s my father, sweetheart. I can’t leave him behind.”

She smiled. “That is as it should be.”

“No,” Finn muttered, his face strained, “Han’s right. You guys need to pack up and disappear.”

“You want to help me, Finn?” Ben demanded. “Take a seat. Tell me everything you know about your pack.”

Ben sat down on the old couch, Rey snuggled close beside him, and after a second’s hesitation Finn took the armchair across from them. 

“Firstly, they’re not really my pack,” Finn said, his eyes on the ground.

“What does that mean?”

“I was just a pup when I was adopted into the clan. I was born into Clan Calrissian. My former Alpha was a good male, not as long lived as… as the Alpha I serve now, but strong and true.”

Ben was beginning to put two and two together. “You said your Alpha destroyed other packs. Clans. Is that what he did to your family of origin?”

Finn nodded. “I can barely remember them and yet… You know how Rose kept going on and on about imprinting when Rey was still a wolf pup?” The two men exchanged involuntary grins and Rey rolled her eyes. “It’s like that. I wasn’t with them for very long, but that past life echoes within me. I can still see my brothers and sisters, my mother and the wise women of the pack. Calrissian was a different kind of leader to my current Alpha. He was warm, open. Loving. It made acclimatising to my new pack a nightmare.”

“Did this Alpha kill Calrissian and take over the rest of your clan?” Ben asked, wondering how it worked.

“No, it’s not that easy,” Finn admitted. “Alpha kills the elders of every clan he has decimated, followed by every werewolf who has reached adulthood. If you are still a cub, a youngling, he will take you on, claim you as part of his army or workforce. Poe… Poe is not a bad male, Ben, I swear. He protected me in a brutal environment. For decades, all he’s known is Alpha’s ways. He too came from another pack- Clan Skywalker.”

Ben twitched and Rey looked at him in concern. 

“What did you just say?” he asked hoarsely.

“Alpha destroyed Clan Skywalker and absorbed Finn into his ranks.”

“When?”

“Many decades ago- almost a century.”

Ben did the math in his head. That was about the time Anakin Skywalker stopped sending his soldiers to re-take Leia, releasing his mother from her responsibilities as a pureblood female intended to marry the son of another pack leader. Leia assumed her father had done so because she’d proven her love for Han, but what if it was because there was a war brewing and Anakin didn’t know if he’d survive? Better his blood daughter inherit his wealth than some rival Alpha.

“Clan Skywalker is no more?” Ben asked, not knowing how to feel about that. He realised his predominant emotion was regret… regret he’d never known the fierce male Alpha who’d been his grandfather.

He noticed Finn was looking at him strangely. “Ben, how old are you exactly?”

Ben knew what the younger werewolf was asking, whether like Poe he’d once been a part of Clan Skywalker. “Don’t get excited, Finn. Poe was right to call me forsaken. I’ve never had a clan.” Finn looked disappointed and Ben gave a wry smile. “Tell me more about Rey’s background. Am I right in thinking her mother was pure wolf?”

Ben stood and walked to the kitchen as he asked the question, Rey in step beside him. He was suddenly starving. It took Finn a moment to follow them and Ben was tearing into cold chicken by the time the other man started to answer his question.

“There used to be a treaty between the packs, or so I’ve been told.” Finn said as Ben fixed Rey a plate as well. “Even in our past, werewolves have had difficulty producing female offspring. The treaty ensured clans exchanged their females to maintain bloodlines. The ancient ones despised half-breeds. A dilution of the species, is what they called it.”

“The females were shipped between clans?” Rey sniffed. “Nice to know you, now go be a breeder?”

Ben smothered a grin around a mouthful of chicken.

“Not at all,” Finn earnestly tried to explain. “The wife of an Alpha was viewed as an Alpha too. In my former pack, the women formed a council of wisdom that Calrissian always referred to before making major decisions. That was the old ways.”

Ben heard Rey mutter something about “glorified puppy mills” and tried not to laugh. “Why wouldn’t the Alpha you serve keep the females from conquered clans?”

“There were none to be had,” Finn said sadly. “Sometimes there are dry breeding seasons, but ours lasted for generations. Some believe inbreeding is the cause behind our poor fertility. Others call it a curse on our kind, nature righting its wrongs. Whatever the case, our werewolf mothers were miscarrying their young, and those who did bring their offspring to full term birthed males. It was impossible finding a full blood werewolf female young enough to bear pups.” 

Finn paused and Ben poured him a glass of Han’s lemonade. He hoped his father was alright, otherwise there was every likelihood he would lose his temper in the midst of a pack of werewolves, no matter what the odds. 

Finn drained his glass, giving Ben a grateful nod before continuing. “Alpha decided rather than human mates we would claim pure wolf females. It was his preference we mix the bloodlines with our more feral ancestors.”

Ben finished the remainder chicken as Rey rattled around the fridge for what he could only assume was more chocolate mousse. “There’s a perverse kind of logic to that, I suppose.”

“It’s horrific,” Finn shuddered. “We have slaughtered entire packs of wild wolves just to get to their females. These she-wolves are chained to the ground and forced to breed with our males. Even then, most fail to fall pregnant. Those who do manage to bear young still overwhelmingly give birth to males. Amongst these pups, only a small fraction are shapeshifters.”

Rey paused in her act of inhaling an entire tub of chocolate chip cookie dough ice-cream. “No wonder my mother ran.”

Finn nodded. “She produced the rarest thing possible- a healthy female pup. She must have been afraid for you, for the plans Alpha had for you.”

Rey looked ill, pushing away dessert. “The behaviour you describe is evil.”

“I’m sorry,” Finn muttered, looking ashamed. “When you’re a part of the clan, you assume the pack mind. It’s all you know. This is the longest time I’ve been away from them and,” he paused, anguished, “just watching Ben’s kindness to Rose made me realise how monstrous we have been by imprisoning females, taking away their freedoms, their rights.” 

Ben clasped Rey’s hand which was clenched into a little fist. He knew what she was thinking. There was much more at stake here than just Han’s life, but Ben couldn’t think about that right now. His mission was simple- get to his father.

As powerful a werewolf as he knew himself to be, that didn’t matter when the enemy had an army of shapeshifters at his command. 

“You said I’ll be walking into a trap,” Ben spoke quietly. “This ancient Alpha- he wants Rey, doesn’t he? And he wishes me dead.”

“To be honest, Alpha seems intrigued by you,” Finn said with a frown.

“Intrigued?”

“Poe is one of his generals and it’s been years since he was defeated. I think the Old One wishes to see you before… well, y’know.”

“Yes, I do know,” Ben said, absentmindedly tracing the back of Rey’s hand as it rested in his.

His mind was still roaming, going over prior discussions with Han, the photographs he’d stolen from Armie’s phone, the similarity between the wounds found on Rey’s mother’s body and Leia’s savaged werewolf form.

“I can give you the layout of the camp and a rundown of the pack’s best warriors. Alpha no longer fights. His soldiers fight for him, and he has an inner circle…”

“Palpatine,” Ben said, loud and clear. 

Rey looked at him as if he were loopy but Finn took a step back, nearly dropping his empty glass.

“How do you know that name?” he gasped.

“I’m right, aren’t I?” Ben asked, the embers of a strange new fire burning in his heart. “He’s your Alpha.”

“How?” Finn asked again, panicked.

Ben’s grip on Rey’s hand tightened until she squeaked. “He killed my mother.”


	14. Fabric Of Your Flesh

The moon was bright in the twilight sky and Ben Solo was hunting. He was barefoot on cool forest grass, dressed in waterproof black pants and a grey hooded sweater. Some things did not change. 

To give his human form the best advantage, he had shapeshifted an hour ago. Residual werewolf senses sharpened his eyesight and hearing, making him sensitive to every scent that was brought to him on the wind. Though the smell he was dealing with did not need superhuman abilities to be detected. It was the ripe stench of caged fear. 

Ben crept into Clan Palpatine’s camp like a shadow. His werewolf form released sharp masculine pheromones and he didn’t want to leave a trail. For now, two legs were subtler than four.

He’d had a massive argument with Rey as he prepared for the infiltration. She wanted to be with him when he saved Han, but he couldn’t allow it knowing she wasn’t able to shapeshift at will. A human girl, no matter how resourceful, would be at the mercy of a pack of wolves. Besides which, Rey was the real prize Palpatine was after and Ben would not let them have her.

Just as Finn had described, the centre of the camp held a number of old caravans, most filled with cages. Finn explained they would load female wolves onto the transport rather than herd them along like sheep. It was less wear and tear on the pregnant ones, and easier to move recalcitrant she-wolves that way.

Ben stepped into a small clearing, unable to believe what he was seeing. Dozens, perhaps hundreds of she-wolves were gathered together, grey wolves local to the area, smaller red wolves from the mid-west, snowy arctic wolves with their thicker coats. Their pups played around them, drinking milk and tumbling over one another, eyes bright and tails wagging. Several of the females were chained to the ground but just as many roamed free, their true prison the reality that they had no pack to return to.

Ben watched and began to recognise the order of things. Those she-wolves still able to give milk were to one side of the group, feeding rambunctious pups. The ones so pregnant they were nearing time for delivery lay in another corner, less active. And then there were the older females, the silver of age frosting their pelts. These ones were no longer fertile but Palpatine had learnt to keep them around to calm the younger females.

Ben stayed in the shadows but eventually a curious wolf cub discovered him. He was a fat, roly-poly little thing, white with grey markings. Like Rey, the little one recognised Ben’s scent as wolfish, sniffing him curiously. He crouched down, offering his fingers to be nibbled on. 

_Who are you?_

The question popped into his head, demanding a response. Ben looked up to see an old she-wolf, her ruff almost entirely silver, watching him intently. By her side was a younger red wolf, tense and ready to attack.

Ben stayed still, allowing the red wolf mother to call her young back to her side, the pup reluctantly leaving Ben’s proffered hand.

 _Your voice rings clear in my mind,_ Ben said curiously.

The she-wolf waited until the young mother and pup had left their immediate vicinity. _I have belonged to this pack for many years. Palpatine finds me useful and gives me his blood to extend my life. After some time, I learned to speak as they do._

 _Why would you want to continue living this way?_ Ben asked, gazing beyond her at a dozen she-wolves with thick, rusted chains around their necks.

Golden eyes narrowed. _I look after my own._

Ben bowed his head, feeling the weight of her rage and sorrow. His eyes prickled with tears. She had seen so much death and brutality. So many lives lost.

_You call the pack leader by name. Is he not your Alpha?_

_Never!_ Her hackles rose and she bared her fangs. 

Ben saw a dozen other wolves start to gather a few paces behind her, seeking to protect the female from his presence. The old mother had her loyal followers.

_You are not of this clan. Why have you come here?_

Ben hesitated, wondering whether he could trust the she-wolf. He took a gamble. _Palpatine has kidnapped my father._

The she-wolf tensed. _You are the one they speak of, the young Alpha with no pack._

 _I have a pack,_ Ben was surprised to hear himself declare. _We are a pack of two._

The she-wolf sat down on her haunches, ears pricking. _The girl pup- she is well?_

_You would be proud of her, mother. She is strong and quick._

_She is your mate._

_Yes._

The old wolf slowly wagged her tail. _Remarkable._

_Will you let me pass, mother?_

She bowed her head, retreating a few steps so Ben could step forward. _I wish you well on your hunt, Alpha._

Ben smiled, touched by her acknowledgement. “My name is Ben.”

Her tongue lolled out of her mouth as she looked up at him. _I am Amilyn. Remember me when the time is right._

Ben slipped through the enclave of she-wolves, feeling the weight of a hundred pairs of eyes, some afraid, others nervous, all of them curious. He saw wounds on the flanks of the chained ones and it made his heart ache. If his own mother were here, she would be furious.

He told himself he had a job to do. As much as he wanted to help these she-wolves, he was only one male. 

Ben continued to pick his way through the campsite. It was remarkably quiet for a five hundred strong clan and he wondered if Palpatine had ordered most of his soldiers to the lakeside. The handful of sentries he did see were lackadaisical, more interested in cleaning their claws than watching for invaders. 

At last, Ben spotted the makeshift cell. They had built it out of hastily nailed together pieces of wood. 

“Dad?” he whispered, peering through a gap in the frame. 

“What the hell are you doing here, kid?” a familiar voice hissed. “Where’s Rey?”

“We argued about whether she could come on the rescue mission,” Ben murmured, testing the firmness of the wooden box. 

“You should have run.”

Ben ignored Han for the moment. He might need to shapeshift to rip through the wood frame, but if he just put his back into it… The crack of planks snapping like so many matches echoed through the woods.

“Come on,” he told his father, scanning the surroundings for Palpatine’s soldiers. 

Han scrambled out of the box, his t-shirt and sweat pants snagging on splinters, hair dishevelled. He sported a shiny black eye and an impressive cut on one cheek. The two men briefly embraced before Han snapped, “You’re an idiot.”

“Love you too, dad,” Ben said, still watching for the enemy. There was not a sound to be heard. “Something doesn’t feel right.”

“Why’s it so quiet?” Han agreed. “This place was crawling with werewolves only an hour ago.”

The two men made their way across the nearly deserted camp at a jog. They had reached the outskirts when Finn revealed himself. Han drew back in caution, but Ben readily approached him. 

“You did it!” Finn gasped. 

“We need to keep moving. Now is not the time to celebrate,” Ben cautioned.

Rey appeared from behind a tree trunk and Han gaped. “I thought you told her to stay home.”

“No, what I said was we argued about it. I never said I won the fight.” Ben grabbed Rey’s hand as they continued to move through the forest. “Another mile or so and we’ll reach my truck. It’s already gassed, ready to go.”

“You coming too?” Han asked Finn gruffly.

The younger male shook his head as he jogged to keep up with Ben’s pace. “I can’t leave Poe behind.”

“Dangerous choice,” Han told him, starting to pant as they continued to hustle. “If the boss finds out you helped us…”

“What is the punishment for a werewolf who betrays not only his Alpha, but his entire pack?”

The cold voice echoed through the forest, as clear as a wolf’s howl, and the four of them froze. 

“Run!” Ben yelled as his survival instincts kicked in.

They pounded through the forest, dodging trees and fallen debris, unable to see the enemy around them. Too late Ben realised what was happening. Palpatine had set a trap and with his superior numbers, it was almost certain they were running straight towards his soldiers.

Werewolves began to appear from the shadows, strapped with leather armour and holding brutal weapons, spears and spiked clubs, double headed axes and machetes. The group ground to a halt when it became clear they were surrounded. 

Ben pushed Rey into the centre of the circle formed by himself, Finn and Han. He considered shapeshifting but then wondered what was the point. They were well and truly ensnared.

A large, shaggy grey werewolf wrapped in a hooded cloak emerged, his movements slow but precise. “Tie them up and take them back to camp,” he ordered. “I will make my judgement at the ruling circle.”

Ben snarled as Rey’s hands were roughly bound, earning himself a fist in the belly. Another big werewolf appeared to secure his hands while he was bent over and still gasping for air. Han didn’t resist, his gaze wary. The werewolf who dealt with Finn had a mahogany pelt.

“Damnit, Finn,” he heard the werewolf growl in Poe’s voice.

“I’m sorry,” Finn said, his expression strained. “I did what I thought was right.”

The campsite they returned to was completely different from the one Ben had infiltrated; it was now teeming with soldiers. Palpatine must have cleared the way for Han’s rescue so Ben could lead the werewolves back to Rey. He was furious at himself, believing he could do the right thing for once.

“So you are him- a clanless, packless half-breed abomination,” the grey werewolf declared from atop a wooden dais.

The sun had set and the night sky was covered in a starry constellation. Ben, Rey, Han and Finn stood in a circular area, their arms restrained by chains. A dozen new stumps revealed the space had been cleared for this exact purpose, a viewing area for Clan Palpatine’s Alpha.

Palpatine himself was seated on a throne made out of interwoven reindeer antlers and skulls, a gruesome sight only worsened by the bloodshot yellow gaze that surveyed them. He was a big wolf, certainly bigger than the other werewolves in his pack, though age had taken its toll. His musculature was thin and shrivelled and there was an opacity to his irises that made Ben wonder about his vision. It was the price of centuries, he supposed. 

“You know who I am,” Ben said, drawing a murmur from the crowd of gathered werewolves. He was probably being impertinent, but he didn’t know how else to speak to another shapeshifter.

“You are no one,” Palpatine snarled, black lips curling to bare his fangs, “but I know of the accident of your birth.”

“Accident?” Ben laughed with false bravado. “I am Ben Solo, son of Han and Leia, grandson of Anakin Skywalker.” The murmurs around him increased. “I was born out of free will and love. Can you say the same for any of your pups?”

“Silence!” Palpatine howled, half standing up from his throne. “They say you are an Alpha, but all I see is a snivelling whelp.”

“Why am I here?” Ben demanded, raising his voice for the listening pack. “What wrong have I done?”

“The she-wolf is ours,” Palpatine declared. “You are a thief and a coward.”

“I belong to my Alpha!” Rey cried, tense in her bounds. “My mother ran from your vile attempts to enslave her. Fate and magic sealed my destiny, bringing me to my perfect mate. He is mine and I am his.”

“As you can see,” Ben said coolly, “Rey has her own voice.” 

This time Palpatine did stand, clawed hands slashing at the air in fury. “You dare?” he roared. “It is my blood that runs in your veins, female. You owe me everything, starting with your very existence.”

The werewolves around them began yipping and howling in agreement, some bashing their weapons against the ground. Ben felt blood lust thicken the air. Careful. They had to be very careful. He glanced at Rey and saw horror in his mate’s face over the revelation that this ancient male was her biological father. 

“No,” she whispered pitifully. “It cannot be.”

“You’re worth more than your bloodlines, sweetheart,” Han said gruffly, turning to her in compassion. “Trust me.” 

“You know, I’m glad you have no desire to broker an agreement,” Ben said conversationally to the old wolf. “I find the loss of life wasteful, especially when our kind are so close to extinction. I would have felt a responsibility to hear you out. Fortunately, you’re a violent sonuva bitch- pardon the pun- and now we get to fight like real werewolves.”

“I knew the human skin you wear was a false pretence of civility, Solo,” Palpatine barked. 

Ben shook his head. “Oh no, don’t mistake my words. I am a sum of my parts, both werewolf and human. It’s taken me a generation to understand that dichotomy is what makes me the perfect Alpha in a new world.” He could sense listening ears prick up in attention.

“Just like your grandfather,” Palpatine muttered. “So convinced we had to let go of the old ways to endure. Werewolves do not bow to humans, do you understand? We are our own masters.”

“And what was your issue with my mother?” Ben demanded, watching Palpatine stiffen where he stood. “Did you not kill her, a pureblood werewolf female, precious to the existence of the pack, simply because your pride was hurt?”

On his left Han twisted against his chains, his face shocked. “What’re you saying, kid?”

“The one who killed Rey’s mother in this very forest killed my own years ago,” Ben said, raising his voice. “Leia daughter of Skywalker was promised to Clan Palpatine but she ran. For that sin, she was slaughtered. Twice now this male has murdered females able to produce shapeshifting offspring. Are these the acts of an Alpha shouldering his responsibility for his kin?”

The murmurs of the crowd swelled once more and Ben felt a flicker of hope.

“Enough!” Palpatine howled, his thin form shaking with rage. “You seek vengeance, young Solo? Then you shall have it. Let our traditions show us the way. You will battle the best of my warriors. To the death.”


	15. Hallowed Ground

Rey, Han and Finn were dragged protesting to the edge of the clearing. Ben met Rey’s wide gaze, trying to reassure his mate even though he had little expectation he would survive the fight. Palpatine would ensure the odds remained in his champion’s favour.

Ben reminded himself that that he still held the element of surprise; his size and speed had shocked Poe, perhaps that was enough to save him now. He was becoming pretty good at grasping at straws. 

A large werewolf with a dark grey pelt bounded into the ring to the howls of his brethren. He had a streak of white fur across his muzzle which Ben realised had once been a scar. What was more concerning was the square headed hammer he held within his clawed grasp, its edges surrounded by cruel metal spikes. 

“Vicrul is part of my personal guard,” Palpatine announced, his voice gleeful. “He is a specialist, an elite knight rather than a simple soldier.”

“Thanks for the heads up,” Ben muttered. “Just a couple of questions. What about my chains and do I get my own battlehammer?”

Palpatine returned to his throne without bothering to reply and Ben faced his opponent with a sinking heart. Awesome- no weapon and hands tied behind his back. Things were looking up. 

Vicrul stared at Ben still in human form and began to laugh. “Puny half-breed,” he growled. 

Ben smiled, baring his canines. “Just wait until I get my fur on. I’m totally hot then.”

The grey werewolf glared at him in disbelief. Ben waited until silver eyes narrowed and posture tightened. He shapeshifted explosively with no attempt at control, his thickening bones and bulging muscles doing exactly what he hoped they would, shattering the rusty chains wrapped around his wrists.

Ben felt the collective inhalation of the pack as he emerged fully werewolf, black fur and blood red eyes, a head taller than Vicrul. He threw his head back and howled in exhilaration, adrenaline rushing through his blood stream. 

_You look like Anakin Skywalker._

Ben glanced at Poe who had channelled the thought straight at him. 

_It’s why I froze last night. You’re the image of my former Alpha._

Ben rolled thickly muscled shoulders, preparing for attack. _You didn’t freeze. I was just moving that fast._

_You’re funny. Just wait till Vicrul hits you._

_Any tips?_

_Yeah, don’t die._

_Who’s the comedian now?_

Vicrul charged, weapon raised high above his head. Ben leapt out of the way just in time. He felt the whoosh of air as the bulky hammer head missed his temples by inches. Vicrul barely drew a breath, whirling around and leaping once more, this time aiming lower, ready to cave in his chest. Ben lifted his hands, bones rattling as his arms collided with the hammer’s handle.

“Ow,” he muttered around his wolf’s muzzle. “Missed me!”

Vicrul snarled, winding up his hammer and throwing it. Ben felt the glancing blow all the way to his hairy feet, spiked edges tearing through his pelt. Damnit, that stung. Now that his opponent’s weapon was embedded in a tree trunk a mile away, it was time to end this.

Ben sprang at the grey wolf, fangs bared and claws extended. Vicrul wasn’t expecting the attack and the two werewolves rolled on the ground, biting and slashing. Ben sank his teeth into his opponent’s shoulder, ripping muscle and sinew, rendering one arm useless. Vicrul threw him down to the ground, his other hand wrapped around Ben’s neck, choking him, but he’d lost too much blood.

Ben rolled out from under the grey werewolf, deliberately stamping on Vicrul’s back leg. The snap of bone drew a groan from the watching pack and Vicrul collapsed on the ground. Ben stepped away from him, muzzle streaked with blood, chest heaving as he gulped air. He faced Palpatine.

“Finish him,” the ancient Alpha ordered.

Ben blinked. “What? Why? He will heal… in a week or so.”

“He has failed me,” Palpatine sniffed. 

Ben turned to look at Vicrul who was still trying to get back onto his feet. He shook his head and walked over to the big grey.

“Alpha!” he heard Rey cry out.

Ben turned toward her and winked. He slammed Vicrul’s head against a tree stump, knocking him out completely.

“Death is wasteful,” he told Palpatine, his dark werewolf voice raised for the sake of the pack. “Vicrul fought well. Let him live to fight another day.”

Ben saw the spark of rage in the Alpha’s eyes as once more he refuted Palpatine’s orders. 

Palpatine gave him a savage smile. “The only thing I regret after killing your bitch of a mother was leaving you behind. I assumed you would be a weak halfling, puny and useless. It’s a pity you were corrupted by your human father. You could have been a mighty weapon in my arsenal, a true apprentice to my ways.”

“Joke’s on you,” Ben snapped. “Dad turned out to be a drunkard who left me to raise myself.”

Behind him, he heard Han groan. “Really, kid? Is this the right time for humour?”

“We all have our coping mechanisms,” Ben said, shooting his father a tight grin. 

Palpatine was already waving his arm and out of the pack emerged another big werewolf. He had a dark brown coat and in his hand he held a two headed axe, no less savage looking than the hammer. 

“Finish him, Cardo,” Palpatine commanded. 

Ben stiffened his shoulders, turning to the newcomer. “Really, dude, you sure you wanna fight me? I’m Vicrul’s sloppy seconds, after all.” 

Cardo howled, leaping at Ben with ferocious intent. 

Behind him, Ben heard Rey scream, “No! He has won his fight! This is unjust.”

Palpatine’s high, yipping laugh was cold enough to freeze blood. “This was never a display of skills, she-wolf. It is an execution. As many of my knights as it takes.”

Ben battled on, each new opponent carving another chunk out of his prodigious hide, tearing flesh and spilling blood. He defeated Cardo as well, but not before his axe head left ugly gashes along Ben’s flank. After Cardo came Ushar, wielding a wicked looking barbed spear that Ben was certain had created lifelong scars should he survive the night. Ushar was followed by Trudgen, happier to use his bulky fists than his meat chopper. Ben came closest to stumbling over him, his body pummelled repeatedly until ears rang and vision blurred. To his surprise he dispatched Kuruk quite easily, more out of good luck than skill, his quick swipe of the claw severing flesh and connecting with the werewolf’s intestinal tract, pulling his insides to the outside. Ben wasn’t about to argue the win. 

The roar of the pack grew louder with each victory and the number of wolves watching seemed to grow as well. Ben caught Amilyn’s eye mid-bout, the old she-wolf surrounded by her female retinue. He supposed they too had come to see him die.

After his fifth fight, Ben was on his knees, pelt bloodied by numerous cuts and bites, breath like fire in his lungs. Again Palpatine waved his hand and once more a battle hardened werewolf appeared. Ap’lek had a dirty yellow coat and a white belly, his gaze calculating as he shouldered his mace.

Ben looked at him wearily and turned to face Rey. He was unsure he could withstand another round. He realised if he died he would prefer Rey be the last thing he saw. She was weeping, eyes red rimmed and cheeks flushed. Han… Han looked as if he’d been crying too. How extraordinary. Finn’s face was distraught.

Rey broke free from her captors and ran to Ben. Her arms were still tied behind her back but she threw herself against him, burying her face in the ruff of his neck, uncaring that her golden skin was coming away smeared with blood. It broke his heart to feel her shaking, knowing her concern was all for him.

 _You have to go on,_ Ben said, lifting a deadened arm to wrap around her slim human form. _Live. For me_.

“I don’t want to, Alpha,” Rey sobbed. “Don’t ask that of me.”

_You have allies in this place, little one. You are not alone._

“You saved my life. You are my everything, Alpha. I cannot do this without you.”

 _Sweetheart… You’re strong, Rey. Stronger than me._ You _saved_ me, _woke me up from my nightmare existence, dragged me into the sunlight._

“Remove her!” Palpatine ordered. “Let’s not stain the she-wolf with the blood of the half-breed.”

Rey screamed as Poe dragged her away. Ben was grateful to see he was trying to be gentle, but his mate was losing her mind, kicking and struggling. The next thing Ben knew was a huge blow to his flank.

The hit sent him rolling on the ground and he let momentum take him, moving him away from Ap’lek’s killing swing of the mace.

“No!” Rey screamed. “Ben, no!”

He almost smiled. How strange to hear her call him by name.

Ben tried to stagger to his feet but there was nothing left in him. He pushed himself onto his knees, rubbing his face to clear his eyes of blood. Still, he struggled to see. This was it, then. The end.

_Not the end, Alpha._

The roar of the pack quietened as Rey’s honeyed voice soothed the blinding pain in his head.

_I have seen your future, Ben Solo. Our future. Just the shape of it in dreams, but solid and clear. You will not bow before Palpatine. You will rise. And I will help you._

Ben turned. Rey… no longer human but a werewolf, dark gold fur, her chains fallen to the ground. She was different again from when he’d thought her a simple animal, larger but still lithe and sleek.

_Will you stand with me, Rey?_

_Always, Alpha._

Ben frowned. Rey’s figure was lit not just by moonlight but by an unnatural glow. What he was seeing had silenced the pack, even making Ap’lek freeze. Above Rey’s head hung a blazing red sword.

 _No,_ Ben told himself, his mother called it a saber. 

The necklace- it had shapeshifted with Rey, releasing its hidden magic. Revealing the last Skywalker heirloom.

Rey reached up and grasped the silver hilt of the saber. It looked natural in her clawed grasp. To his amazement, she beckoned to Ap’lek. The big werewolf hesitated and instantly looked ashamed he’d done so.

Ap’lek charged towards Rey, spiked mace held out before him. She swung the saber with unerring grace, the brilliant blade sliding deep into her attacker’s chest like a hot knife through butter. Ap’lek fell dead at her feet and the roar of the pack was deafening.

 _Arise, Alpha. Claim your birthright._

Ben stood, head shaking in disbelief, new energy surging through his battered body.

_Rey… My Rey. My perfect mate._

She licked a stripe up his bloodied muzzle, placing the saber in Ben’s paw. He stared at his grandfather’s weapon, feeling its power.

_I know what I have to do, but I don’t know if I have the strength to do it._

_You must bring back the balance, Alpha. In your heart lies true strength. Now rise._

Ben tightened his grip on the saber’s pommel. He gazed at Palpatine still on his throne, the grizzled old werewolf looking petrified.

“Impossible!” he hissed, his voice shrill with fear. “You have Anakin’s sword.”

“It’s a saber,” Ben snarled. He started to run, leaping onto the dais, every step leaving bloody paw prints. 

As he drew closer Palpatine began to yell for his werewolves to defend him. The pack was still, holding their breath for what seemed an inevitable conclusion.

“I said the loss of life was a waste,” Ben murmured, standing over the ancient Alpha, “but sometimes death is needed to remove a scourge of darkness.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about, boy…”

Ben swung his saber, the glowing red blade slicing Palpatine’s head clean off his neck. It went rolling across the dais like a misshapen ball, the sickly yellow light of his eyes fading.

“Shut up, old man,” he grunted. “And that was for my mother.”

For a second, there was no sound, Takodana forest was as quiet as it could be with hundreds of wolfen breaths. And then the yips and howls began, cries of grief and pain, some of confusion, because as wicked as Palpatine had been, he was still Alpha.

So recently filled with purpose, Ben was suddenly unsure what to do next. He was relieved when Rey joined him on the dais, still a werewolf which was going to take some getting used to. 

_You have done well, Alpha._

Ben said nothing and another female voice intruded.

_Your mate is right, Alpha. You have freed us all. Now take your rightful place as our pack master._

Ben stared at Amilyn, the grizzled old wolf mother watching him her with glowing silver gaze. 

_Me? It was never my intention…_

_And yet it has come to pass. Quickly now, before the pack descends into chaos_.

Ben looked for Han, and to his surprise his father was watching him with pride.

He took a deep breath and seated himself on the throne, Palpatine’s cold dead body at his feet, Rey standing beside him. Amilyn and her she-wolves lay down before him, head’s bowed.

Ben glanced at Rey as the rest of the pack watched, stunned. 

_This isn’t going to work. Get ready to run._

But just as he formed the words, there came a rustle of movement. Poe stood before the dais, his mahogany coat shining in the moonlight. He took Ap’lek’s mace from the ground and Ben tensed, wondering if he was about to be challenged.

“The grandson of Anakin Skywalker has defeated Palpatine’s guard,” he declared to the listening pack. “He has killed our old master with the Skywalker sword… saber,” he corrected himself as Ben glowered. “He takes his rightful place as the leader of our pack, having earned it through blood and death. The old ways have been fulfilled.” Poe dropped to one knee, raising the mace in the air. “Alpha.”

Across the forest, slowly one by one, savage werewolves began dropping to their knees, weapons raised until they formed a glittering forest of their own. Their gruff voices repeated Poe’s acknowledgement.

_Alpha._

Ben stared at the gathering of werewolves and wolves, his heart beating hard inside his chest, its rhythm strong and true.

This was his pack. His family. His destiny. Ben Solo was home.


	16. The Beast You've Made Of Me

_Six months later..._

_Alpha! Alpha is here! Alpha, did you bring your sword? It’s a saber, you idiot. Apologise to Alpha. Alpha can you stay? Can you, Alpha? We want to hear your stories, Alpha._

Ben Solo glanced at the furry mound of adorableness before him and struggled not to laugh. There were at least two dozen pups, newly bred since the start of his reign.

Clan Skywalker’s first generation of wolf cubs. 

_Now, now, children, Alpha is here with a precious gift,_ Amilyn’s voice called, snapping them to attention. 

Ben sighed, glancing down at the little princess in his arms. She had her mother’s pure gold fur and her grandmother’s big, dark eyes, and was yawning herself awake at the sound of new friends. Kira gave her father a wolfish smile and pricked up her little ears as some of the pups began calling her name.

Of course, Rey had presented him with a daughter. She knew just what to do to drive him crazy. 

“I don’t know, Amilyn,” Ben said, reluctant to let his Kira loose amongst the boy pups.

 _Yes, you do, Alpha,_ Amilyn reprimanded him. _Kira will be fine, and you and Rey will have much needed time to yourselves._

This time, Ben did chuckle. Amilyn had a way of speaking that made him feel no older than the pups she looked after. He set his daughter down and after a perfunctory swipe of his hand with her tongue, Kira was off playing, bossing around those within earshot.

Yup, trouble. 

As he’d suspected, Rey was already pregnant when he ascended the throne. Her pure blood wolf side resulted in her gestating the baby for a mere two months before Kira was born. The fact that his shapeshifter wife had delivered a female pup who was three-quarters werewolf had solidified in the minds of the pack that Ben was their Alpha, sent to save them from imminent extinction.

Ben’s first orders were to release the female wolves from their chains. A few disappeared into Takodana forest but most remained close, warily watching their new Alpha to see what else he would do. Even those who’d run away eventually reappeared, seeking the familiarity of the pack.

Ben waited for the male pups to grow. As Finn had explained to him, some remained pure wolf in their traits, not developing into shapeshifters. These he formed into packs, dropping them off in separate territories, providing the unsettled she-wolves a way out. A few werewolves protested the release of the females since some had bred children through them, but Ben was firm. A true male did not need chains to keep his mate by his side.

The Skywalker Clan now filled the thousand acres of Takodana forest Ben owned. 

The older, more traditional werewolves remained in their makeshift tents, sleeping under the stars. The younger ones were fascinated by Ben’s cabin and had begun building imitations of his home. His place was the heart of their pack and freshly put together cabins were emerging around it in concentric circles. 

Han was instrumental in showing young werewolves the ropes when it came to building human style dwellings. Ben’s new pack had reinvigorated his father, giving him unexpected purpose.

Ben lifted the ban on human mates as a matter of course. Gwen Phasma was in heaven with the sudden incursion of broad shouldered, muscular males in her sleepy little town. Even Bazine had been seen trying to flirt with Poe. On the other hand, Finn and Rose were still attempting a delicate two-step that annoyed everyone who knew them.

“Greetings, Alpha,” a cheerful voice called out to him. 

Ben glared at Poe who was walking in the woods clad only in jeans. Constantly discarding clothes when one had to shapeshift was a problem.

“I told you to call me Ben,” he snapped.

“Yes, yes, I know, but how else to make you scowl like that?”

Ben waited for Poe to fall into step beside him before he continued his trek home.

“How’s everything?” Ben asked. “Was the trip into town with the younglings successful?”

“We got a few off looks,” Poe grinned, “but they mostly behaved. The townspeople are convinced you’re running a survivalist camp for disaffected youth.”

Ben laughed. “I suppose that’s better than thinking we’re a motorcycle gang.”

“That’s Vicrul’s fault. The male looks like he smashes heads for a living.”

“He does,” Ben reminded Poe. 

Ben had been concerned he would have to eliminate Palpatine’s former knights once they recovered from their wounds, but they’d transferred their fealty to him with grudging respect. Even Rey’s choice to kill Ap’lek with the Skywalker saber had increased their deference to their new Alpha and his mate.

“Speaking of Vicrul,” Poe continued, his tone wreathed with amusement, “he seems to have decided the tall blonde is his. Gwen, is it? He’s already broken a couple of noses making sure no one else goes near her.”

Ben groaned. “He better hope she takes to werewolf life.”

“Gwen’s a tough woman. It’ll be fine. Rose didn’t panic when she found out.”

“Rose is the only townie we’ve told,” Ben reminded him. 

“I’m thinking of asking her out,” Poe said casually.

Ben stopped walking and turned to stare at him. “Excuse me?”

Poe’s smile widened. “It might be the only way to get Finn to take the plunge. He’s too careful, that one. He keeps talking about how Rose deserves better than a werewolf for a mate.”

“You’re diabolical, Poe. You sure you don’t want to be Alpha?”

“Stop trying to offload the position on me,” Poe said, giving him a wave as he branched off towards a cluster of cabins. “You run with wolves now, Solo. You’ll have to howl with the pack.”

Ben sighed as he continued his journey home. More than once he’d hinted to Poe that the more experienced werewolf might want to take up the mantle of Alpha, but no one overhearing the comment had taken him seriously. It was probably a good thing too. Amilyn would be furious if he abdicated responsibility, and after so long without Leia he’d forgotten what it was like to be lectured by a mother wolf.

Ben stepped into his home and sniffed the air. It was scented with lilies and roses, Rey preferring fresh cut flowers to harsh perfumes. 

“Everything okay?” her voice called to him from the bedroom.

“Kira’s safe in Amilyn’s capable paws,” Ben replied, shrugging out of his jacket though he was already barefoot. Some things never changed.

“Han’s gonna be upset we didn’t ask him to babysit, you know.”

“Yeah,” Ben agreed, “but the old man was already busy looking after a group of newly turned werewolves, acclimatising them to human behaviour. What he doesn’t know won’t hurt him…” Ben’s voice trailed off as he walked into the bedroom. 

Rey was in human form- it was very much a coin toss these days which way she went- dressed in a lacey emerald green bralette and matching thong, a tiny scrap of triangular green lace barely covering the delicate slit of her sex. The ruby Skywalker necklace sparkled at her throat. 

“Sweetheart…” he husked.

“What?” Rey asked innocently, tossing her loose tumble of chestnut locks. She laid back on sky blue sheets and spread her tanned thighs.

Ben leapt onto the bed with agility born of his werewolf blood, his eyes blazing red in his human face. He bent down and kissed Rey full on the lips, sucking her tongue into his mouth. 

“I was thinking,” he half growled, making her slender form shudder with anticipation. He licked inside her ear and she squirmed, clutching at his biceps.

“What were you thinking?” Rey panted, lifting her legs to wrap them around his hips.

Ben began unlacing the ribbons that held her top together. “I was thinking it’s good to be Alpha.”

His mate moaned in agreement and for the next several hours Ben stopped worrying about his responsibilities, the she-wolves and the pups, the grizzled old soldiers and the younglings, focusing instead on the female who’d given meaning back to his life.

His pack would be there once they were done.

**Author's Note:**

> Fantasy is my preferred genre, and within fantasy comes epic werewolf tales. It’s a trope that’s so well known and almost brutally overdone, but I couldn’t help myself. I have always, always, always wanted to do a werewolf Reylo fic. To me, Ben Solo/Kylo Ren was made to be a shapeshifter, all tortured and dark. There are some great Reylo werewolf fics out there, and I hope I’ve added something enjoyable and a little unique to the mix. 
> 
> My title comes from Leon Trotsky: ‘When one runs with wolves, one must howl with the pack.’
> 
> I’d love to hear your thoughts. Thank you for always being such great readers. Xoxo


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